WAITING IN LINE Passengers queue at Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 in Pasay City as they wait to board their flights following the resumption of airport operations on Monday, Jan. 2, 2023. INQUIRER file photo / RICHARD A. REYES

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate will be scheduling a hearing to look into the air traffic management system glitch that disrupted flights in the country’s airspace on New Year’s Day, Senator Grace Poe said on Wednesday.

“We can conduct hearings even during the break. I intend to call for a hearing on Thursday, Jan. 12. Allowing CAAP (Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines) and DOTr (Department of Transportation) to normalize airport operations before conducting a hearing,” Poe said in a statement.

“By that time key executives [should] not have an excuse not to attend,” added the Senate Committee on Public Services chairperson.

On New Year’s Day, a power outage downed the Communications, Navigation, and Surveillance Systems of the CAAP’s Air Traffic Management Center.

Flights were then either canceled, diverted, or delayed. About 65,000 passengers were affected by the glitch.

Five senators have filed separate resolutions seeking to investigate the air traffic mess.

/MUF