AirAsia Philippines is gearing up for an increase in travel in the second half of the year.
AirAsia Philippines said it is looking forward to a healthy second semester after posting an on-time performance (OTP) of 81 percent, running with the highest logged last July 6 at 94 percent.
OTP is an airline’s metric value especially on punctuality. An airline is considered on time if it arrives or departs within 15 minutes of the published schedule.
AirAsia said it has maintained a positive OTP in the first half of 2023 despite various factors that greatly affect it such as the inclement weather and natural occurrences, primarily lightning red alerts and bird strikes, on top of other aircraft safety concerns that it addresses.
Data from the Air Carriers Association of the Philippines indicates a significant increase in bird strike occurrences. During the first six months of 2023, local carriers reported 107 bird strike incidents, resulting in varying degrees of impact and aircraft damage.
Meanwhile, the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) recorded 71 and 84 occurrences of lightning yellow and red alerts in May and June. This tripled the number of incidents totaling 166 for the first half of the year compared to the overall 60 occurrences tallied in 2022.
When lightning red alerts are hoisted, flight and ground movements are temporarily suspended while yellow alerts signal caution in view of safety.
“Our day-to-day operations at AirAsia focus on safety, passenger comfort, and on-time performance, in that order, to make sure that we safely and efficiently fly our guests to their destinations. We are not perfect but we try to do it best for our guests and their loved ones. We are also working closely with government and industry partners in mitigating controllable circumstances that are aimed at improving the efficiency of airport operations,” said Steve Dailisan, AirAsia Philippines head for communications and public affairs.
