(Eagle News) — Senator Richard Gordon on Thursday, Aug. 23, said there may be a need to improve the “system of regulatory response” of authorities following the Ninoy Aquino International Airport mishap last week.
“We have to study how the concerned agencies reacted to this incident. Example, how long did it take to evacuate the passengers out of the plane? Was there NAIA equipment and personnel involved or only airline personnel? Was the reaction time, in evacuating passengers/removing the plane, per international standards? If yes, then we should announce. If not, what has to be done to improve?” he said.
He said that “while accidents do happen, we can take preparatory measures so we can lessen the damage should an accident occur.”
Last week’s “fiasco,” he said, “affected thousands of passengers and caused substantial flight cancellations.”
“If there was an emergency response team on standby, complete with the necessary equipment, it would have taken a shorter period to resolve the problem,” he said, reiterating his proposal to outsource dedicated emergency response equipment at NAIA.
Xiamen Air Flight MF8667 skidded off NAIA’s runway 06/24 before midnight last Thursday, Aug. 16.
The incident caused several flight cancellations.
The runway was reopened on Saturday, Aug. 18.
