Philippine authorities halted flights in and out of Manila on New Year's Day due to a malfunction of air traffic control, which also prevented airlines bound to other destinations from using the country's airspace.
A total of 282 flights were either delayed, cancelled or diverted to other regional airports, affecting around 56,000 passengers at Manila's Ninoy Aquino International Airport , the airport operator said on Sunday.Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista apologized for the inconvenience to passengers as he blamed a power outage for the breakdown of the central air traffic control system that also affected operations at other airports in the country.
"This is air traffic management system issue," he said in a media briefing. "If you will compare us with Singapore, for one, there is a big difference, they are at least 10 years ahead of us." Video clips and photos posted on social media showed long queues at the airport and airline personnel distributing food packs and drinks to stranded passengers.