The Mactan-Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA) announced the temporary closure of the Mactan-Cebu International Airport, due to the aftermath of Typhoon Odette (International: Rai).
In an advisory, the MCIAA said the typhoon affected hotels and government facilities due to power and telecommunication outages. The processing of PCR test results is also delayed, leaving passengers unable to be released from hotel quarantine facilities.
As a result, arriving and departing international flights from Cebu airport will be suspended until 5:59 am (local time) on December 21, 2021. The airport will accept only 600 international passengers per day from December 21-25, 2021. From December 26, 2021, the international passenger cap will increase to 850 per day.
The latest Notice to Airmen for Mactan-Cebu airport (ICAO: RPVM) displayed the suspension of airport operations until 9:00 am (local time) of December 19, 2021, except for military, emergency, humanitarian, and government flights. Domestic flights are expected to resume by that time, subject to preparations and completion of repairs.
Images and videos seen by AUP stressed the damaging impact of the typhoon on the airport. Shattered glass, detached building components, damaged jetbridge, and flooded hallways were seen around the airside and landside sectors of the airport.
All airlines have canceled commercial passenger flights to Cebu today, December 18, 2021.
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