Airport workers and air travelers will be required to wear a face mask, reach airports earlier than usual, be thermal scanned, and observe physical distancing.
These are some of the guidelines to be enforced at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport once air travel restrictions are lifted and the airport resumes operations after the enhanced community quarantine.
The guidelines, according to the Manila International Airport Authority, aim to prevent the further spread of Covid-19 in the country.
The MIAA management purchased a total of 2,675 boxes (133,750 pieces) of surgical face masks and 500 pieces of washable masks to ensure continuous protection of its workers.
“We have to stock up and be prudent in our distribution especially that wearing of masks will now become the new normal,” said MIAA general manager Eddie Monreal.
The MIAA also sought the assistance of the Bureau of Quarantine in determining what type of personal protective equipment is appropriate for its employees given their different work stations.
“We want to make sure that they have the right kind of protection as the nature of their jobs would require,” Monreal said.
MIAA service providers were also told to provide face masks for their employees and to ensure that they get the kind of protection needed for the kind of work that they do as recommended by the Bureau of Quarantine.
Everyone entering the airport complex must also submit themselves to mandatory body temperature check, which has already in place.
Still, the MIAA said it would continue temperature checks at all security checkpoints inside the airport building and vehicle checkpoints within the immediate vicinity of the four NAIA terminals. Security personnel manning these posts are equipped with 81 infrared thermometer guns.
Social distancing measures will be strictly observed at all queuing points inside and outside the terminal building. When seating, a “one seat apart policy” shall be enforced.
Monreal has ordered the installation of acrylic barriers in all check-in counters and help desks in the four terminals.
Yellow floor markings will be seen in all queuing points.
“I call on the airlines most especially, to help us in the implementation by instructing their check-in personnel to monitor passenger compliance to the guideline,” the airport chief said.
With the Office for Transportation Security taking the lead, security procedures shall be done through a “no contact means” but not limited to the use of walk through x-ray machines, portable scanners, handheld metal detectors, and the like, effectively limiting pat down or manual frisking to exceptional instances or situations.
Only passengers with valid travel documents and confirmed bookings for the day will be allowed to enter the airport facility.
Foot baths shall remain in all entry and exit points of passengers and airport personnel, including boarding bridges and/or similar areas for passenger embarkation/disembarkation to and from the aircraft.
As required by the Bureau of Quarantine, all departing and arriving passengers will be required to electronically fill up a Health Declaration Form and Passenger Locator Forms for straightforward contact tracing.
Meanwhile, flag carrier Philippine Airlines is also preparing for the resumption of regular flights on May 16 with a new set of precautionary measures ensuring the safety of all passengers, employees, and staff.
The airline urged all passengers to arrive three hours before departure time for domestic flights and four hours for international travellers due to the mandatory safety and health checks to be conducted.
For carry-on luggage, a maximum weight of only 2kgs is allowed inside the cabin of the aircraft. However, each passenger will get an extra 5kg of free baggage allowance. Passengers may also carry up to 10 100ml bottles of sanitizers with 70% alcohol.
PAL also ensures that all its aircraft are properly maintained while even parked in the ground wherein they are all airworthy once normal operations resume. Each aircraft are thoroughly checked to each detail like sensors, flaps, slats, tires, hydraulics, and every important component. The aircraft are also given full protection and preservation procedures while on the ground.
PAL continues to operate all-cargo flights carrying important medical supplies and items from different parts of the Asia-Pacific region to the different regions and islands within the Philippines, ensuring that the flow of important supplies are unhampered.