Sen. Francis Tolentino seeks answers from the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) regarding the New Year's Day mishap that caused hundreds of flight delays and cancellations.
Tolentino said on Tuesday, January 3, that the backup radar of CAAP in Tagaytay continued to operate normally when the air traffic system at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport reportedly went down.
The senator wants CAAP to explain why the agency failed to utilize the backup facilities in Tagaytay during the incident on Sunday, January 1.
"Habang nangyayari iyon sa Manila, sa NAIA, pinapuntahan ko yung CAAP radar sa Tagaytay para sa ganoon ma-check kung meron abnormality. Normal naman," Tolentino said during DZRH's Damdaming Bayan.
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) and CAAP have cited power supply failure as the cause of the fiasco.
"The incident that resulted in the loss of power in the system was due to a problem in the system’s electrical network, with its uninterruptible power supply (UPS), which is to be used as backup power supply, also failing," DOTr said in a statement.
"The main cause of the power supply problem is still being determined and is subject for investigation," the agency added.
The Senate Committee on Public Services, chaired by Sen. Grace Poe, prepares to conduct an investigation of the New Year's Day malfunction of the air traffic management system.
