Runway damage cripples Philippines' main airport

Manila : The main runway at the Philippines' biggest international airport was closed Monday due to heavy rain, with more than a hundred flights expected to be delayed or diverted, officials said.

A section of the runway, which handles all large aircraft, suffered significant cracks on Monday morning, forcing it to close, aviation and airport spokesmen said.

"It was because of the heavy rain with all those huge aircraft landing. There was a crack (on the runway). It was too damaged so they had to close it for safety reasons," said Eric Apolonio, spokesman for the government's civil aviation office.

The crack scattered small pieces of debris capable of being sucked into engines, making it too dangerous to fly, he told AFP.

The runway closed at 4 pm (0800 GMT) and is expected to reopen at 11 pm after repairs are carried out, Apolonio said.

Manila International Airport said more than 40 departing flights would be delayed or cancelled while over 60 incoming planes would have to be diverted.

Manila airport has a second, smaller runway but it has no landing lights and cannot receive large jet-liners after sundown, airport officials said.