MANILA, Aug. 17 (Xinhua) -- Philippine aviation authorities said on Friday the extraction of the damaged Xiamen Airlines passenger plane will further delay the opening of the main runway of the Manila International Airport.
In its latest advisory, the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) said the runway will be opened around 5 a.m. on Saturday.
The latest advisory came as the number of stranded passengers swelled at the Manila International Airport and at an airport north of Manila. Nearly 80 international and domestic flights have so far been canceled, delayed or diverted to airports outside of Manila.
A Xiamen Airline flight number MF8667 from Xiamen, China suffered "runway excursion" after landing at the Manila International Airport at 11:55 p.m. on Thursday.
The plane then swerved off the runway and onto a grass safety patch a few meters from the main runway after a "missed approach" due to "heavy downpour".
The plane circled Manila after a failed initial landing, the authorities said, adding that the accident occurred when it finally landed on its second attempt.
All 157 passengers and eight crew members were safely evacuated and are now billeted in a hotel, the CAAP and MIAA said.
The damaged major runway has been closed for at least 12 hours, causing flight cancellations, delays and diversion to other airports of many international and domestic flights. Thousands of passengers flock at the airports' departure area waiting for the resumption of the flights.
MIAA General Manager Ed Monreal told a news conference they needed more time to remove the plane from the grass patch, saying that the "soggy" soil is hampering efforts to extract the aircraft.
Airport authorities initially announced that the runway will be operational around noontime on Friday. But the authorities extended the resumption of the operation three times, owing to the difficulty to extract the damaged aircraft.
"I hope that there will be no more extension," Monreal said, expressing hope that the recovery will be completed "as soon as possible."
Monreal added that they needed telescopic cranes to lift the damaged aircraft, adding it is the only way to extract the aircraft.
When asked about the cause of the accident, Monreal said the investigations were continuing, adding investigators were piecing together evidence such as tire-marks.
"The critical point here is the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder," CAAP Director General Jim Sydiongco said.
Until all data are gathered, Sydiongco said they cannot make any conclusion as to the cause of the accident.
