NAIA congestion keeps passengers from disembarking for 10 hours

MANILA, Philippines - The flight from Abu Dhabi to Manila took seven hours but waiting to disembark took 10 hours.

Etihad Airways apologized last Nov. 1 to passengers of Flight EY424 from Abu Dhabi to Manila last Oct. 30, which was diverted to the Clark International Airport (CRK) due to airspace congestion at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

The airline said the pilot suggested that the plane temporarily land at the CRK because fuel reserve was reaching its minimum level due to the long queueing for landing at the NAIA.

Etihad Airways stressed that the circumstance was beyond its control.

It apologized for the inconvenience that passengers experienced as a result of the 10-hour delay in disembarking from the aircraft caused by the airspace congestion at the NAIA, terminal congestion at the CRK and the delay in the arrival of ground transportation.

With 399 passengers, Etihad Flight EY424 was diverted to Clark International Airport at 3:50 p.m. on Oct. 30.  At around 2:05 a.m., only 50 passengers were able to disembark.

All the passengers were ferried to Manila by bus early Saturday morning.

Passengers had complained that they were not allowed to disembark immediately because no buses were available to transport them.

Apart from that, another commercial flight was reportedly being entertained by the Clark immigration.