‘Villaruel’s death was unnecessary’

The use of deadly force to end the control tower standoff at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Parañaque City before dawn Saturday was unnecessary.

This was the stand taken by aviation experts and close associates of former Air Transportation Office chief Col. Panfilo Villaruel Jr., who said the deaths of Villaruel and his aide, Navy Lt. (sg) Ricardo Catchillar, could have been prevented if the officials of the ATO, NAIA and Aviation Security Group (ASG) had coordinated closely and did not panic.

A retired NAIA official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the airport officials "were in a panic because not one of the ATO, NAIA or the ASG has proper training in aviation."

He said Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) General Manager Edgardo Manda was a businessman and Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) executive, airport assistant manager for finance and administration Marcelino Yumul Jr. was also a businessman, while ASG chief Andres Caro II was a veteran policeman.

Villaruel and Catchillar were killed as they were crying out surrender in a pre-dawn assault by ASG and special weapons and tactics (SWAT) personnel on the main NAIA air traffic control tower the two had seized and barricaded Saturday.

Villaruel and Catchillar had taken control of the tower by ordering the air traffic control personnel on the tower’s 11th floor to leave sometime around midnight.

They both had explosives strapped to their bodies and were armed with handguns and grenades and threatened to blow up the NAIA, police said.

The two barricaded the corridor leading to the telecommunications console with furniture and other heavy objects, cut off power to the elevator and rerouted the tower’s frequencies to a back-up location.

They could have stayed in the tower for days without affecting airport operations, sources said.

In fact, ATO Director Anacleto Venturina, the most senior air traffic controller, who is also an expert in aviation matters, was already in the process of relocating personnel to a backup control tower as the ASG and SWAT team assaulted Villaruel and Catchillar’s position and applied force to end the standoff.

Besides the main control room of the tower, which was left in shambles after the standoff and assault, there are four other air traffic control towers at the Manila Domestic Airport, NAIA terminals 1 and 2 and one across the runway near the approach radar. This tower near the runway now serves as the "aerodome control" center.

Aviation experts said the NAIA control tower occupied by Villaruel and Catchillar is not even the heart of air traffic operations. The true nerve center for air traffic control operations, they said, is the Manila Approach Radar and Area Control Center (MARACC), which actually directs all commercial air traffic arriving at and leaving NAIA.

The control tower, they added, is only useful within an eight-kilometer radius around NAIA for giving takeoff and landing instructions to general aviation aircraft and directing the taxiing of commercial planes arriving at and leaving the airport terminals.

The assault teams were deployed to retake the tower when negotiations between Villaruel and Catchillar and airport authorities failed.

Caro said in a radio interview just before he and his men stormed the tower that "I assume this is no longer negotiation or the negotiation had failed because we were called around 1:30 a.m. by Philippine National Police chief (Hermogenes) Ebdane Jr. and we have orders to assault."

MIAA assistant general manager retired Brig. Gen. Angel Atutubo justified the assault by saying Villaruel’s presence in the tower was dangerous because Villaruel is considered knowledgeable in operating the tower’s controls.

"(Villaruel) knows how to operate the equipment and, if the airplanes collide, there would be many people who would be killed, so it is better to have one less casualty," Atutubo said.

Former President Fidel Ramos, who appointed Villaruel to the top ATO post during his term, slammed the table twice at a press conference shortly after the assault. Ramos could barely mask his anger over the incident.

"The tragic end of Jun (Villaruel) to me was unnecessary in terms of his decision to sacrifice himself," Ramos said following his arrival from Hong Kong. "I hope his sacrifice will not be in vain. I see him as well meaning and idealistic."

"We must have this thoroughly investigated and let’s get at the truth of the matter," Ramos said, slamming the table for emphasis.

He agreed to a proposal to have an independent investigation of the incident conducted, adding that this probe could be parallel to the one the PNP will conduct with the aid of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).

Ramos’ temper hit boiling point when he was asked if the rules of engagement had been followed in the tower assault.

"I don’t know what the rules (of engagement) are now," he said. "Such things as this didn’t happen in our time."

Ramos said he does not know what could have pushed Villaruel to such a desperate course of action, but added that "this is probably a decision on his own part motivated by tremendous pressure but consistent with his own life career to promote Philippine aviation — not only the flying part of it, but the creative part of it."

A close friend of Villaruel’s, Ramos described the slain former ATO chief as a man who is "generally idealistic and law-abiding. What we do not know is what entered his mind during the three hours that he took over the tower. Maybe something clicked or something snapped."

Meanwhile, Malacañang extended its condolences to the Villaruel and Catchillar families, but said the assault that resulted in the deaths of their loved ones "was a necessary consequence of a police operation."

"Although we are saddened by their death, if you are a member of the SWAT (team) who is there and the situation is very sensitive and you have to end the hostage situation, the natural reaction to neutralize the threat is justified, considering the time, place and circumstances," Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said.

He said the incident should serve as a reminder to everyone that airport security personnel must maintain the optimum state of readiness to secure such vital installations as the NAIA.