Flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) vowed to extend help to stranded overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) affected by the recent runway mishap.
A Xiamen Airlines jet that overshot on the NAIA runway late Thursday night, August 16, due to heavy downpour and paralyzed operations there for two days.
In an interview on Dobol B sa News TV, PAL spokesperson Cielo Villaluna said PAL has prepared a replacement flight for OFWs bound to Saudi Arabia. The flight would depart on Wednesday, August 22, at lunchtime.
The flight would cater to 250 passengers which will land first in Riyadh, then in Dammam, before it returns to Manila.
Aside from the said flight, other replacement flights are also being scheduled to cater to other affected OFWs.
Among other help extended by PAL to the stranded OFWs include assistance in rebooking, rerouting, or refunding of flights, and providing OFWs with certifications which they can show to their employers to explain the delay in their arrival.
Villaluna said they are working with the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) with the certifications.
Earlier, many OFWs feared of losing their jobs due to the delay of their flights.
In response, the Department of Foreign Afffairs (DFA) advised embassies and consulates in the OFWs destinations to prepare certificates that OFWs can show to their employers in explaining the mishap that happened at the airport.
Manila International Airport Authority general manager Ed Monreal said in a radio interview that he is sure employers can understand the OFWs’ situation. He also called on airlines to issue certificates as proof that it was not the OFWs’ fault that their flights were cancelled.
Labor and Employment Secretary Silvestre Bello III is also urging OFWs to ask the department for assistance and other concerns about their visas.
