Responsibility of airlines to check if airspace is open

There is no basis for Qantas to blame Singapore for the delay of its flight ("23-hour flight delay due to Jubilee celebrations: Qantas"; Aug 11).

Other airlines, such as Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific, managed to reschedule their flights, suggesting that advance notice was given by the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore about the closure of airspace.

Even if no advance notice was given, surely airlines are expected to check in advance to confirm if the airspace is open, especially when such an important national event like the golden jubilee National Day Parade is on.

Closure of airspace is not uncommon.

In July last year, China's aviation regulator issued a flight restriction on airports in Shanghai, Nanjing and Wuhan over a three-week period because of military drills.

It is inevitable that there will be some inconvenience caused for airlines when airspaces are closed.

Instead of blaming Singapore, Qantas should review its channels of communication and in-house procedures to dissipate information.

It should have made arrangements to reschedule its flights, and should have informed its customers in advance, to avoid confusion and frustration.

Francis Cheng

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