It is possible that an 'external threat' was the cause of the New Year's Day glitch at NAIA among those under investigation - DOTr

 

DOTr

It is possible that an 'external threat' was the cause of the New Year's Day glitch at NAIA among those under investigation - DOTr 

Among the things currently being investigated by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines Aerodrome and Air Navigation Safety Oversight Office (AANSOO) is the possibility that an "external threat" was the cause of the technical glitch at NAIA that caused the total shutdown of airport operations and the cancellation of more than 300 international and domestic flights and about 65,000 passengers were affected. According to Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista, this does not eliminate the possibility of an external attack on the Air Traffic Control System of the Philippines. Bautista said all possibilities will be focused on by the probe team. 

He said there have been speculations but none of them can be confirmed at this time. The secretary assured that they will do everything to prevent the said incident from happening again. On the other hand, Bautista maintained that the technical glitch that happened on New Years Day was due to outdated facilities that really needed to be replaced with modern facilities. Bautista admitted that the Philippine airport is 10 years away compared to airports in other countries that use modern equipment. The secretary personally conducted an inspection to ascertain the situation at the airport and ensure the safety of passengers. Secretary Bautista assured that all affected passengers whose flights were canceled or delayed are fine and will be provided with any assistance they need. Secretary Bautista also went to the CAAP where he found out the cause of the malfunction in the Air Traffic Control System that resulted in the disruption of flights at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.