Probe sought on Parañaque plane crash

MANILA, Philippines - Transportation and Communications Secretary Manuel Roxas II yesterday met officials of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) and ordered a thorough investigation of the light aircraft incident that left 14 people dead last Saturday.

Roxas ordered CAAP officials, led by its director general, retired Air Force colonel Ramon Gutierrez, to ascertain the liability of the owner of the light plane and effect a speedy, seven-day timeline for the submission of the investigation report.

Gutierrez reported that he has constituted the Aircraft Accident Investigation Inquiry Board (AAIIB) headed by Capt. Amado Soliman Jr. to lead the panel that will investigate the crash of the Beechcraft Queen Air eight-seater light plane (with registry number RPC-834) in Parañaque City, which exploded on impact and caused a fire that gutted a 2,000-square-meter section of the slum area.

He also informed Roxas that the ill-fated aircraft submitted an official flight plan to the CAAP hours before the flight under the registry of Aviation Technologies Innovators, Inc., a repair station/maintenance and hangar provider.  

But CAAP investigators revealed that the plane had a certificate of registration under one Capt. Fidel Hembrador, a private operator, who reportedly leased ATI for the repair, maintenance and hangar parking services for the plane.

Hembrador has yet to surface following the incident last Saturday.

The CAAP reported that it had retrieved and secured the engines of the plane.

CAAP investigators, with the assistance of the authorized repair station of the engine manufacturer (LYCOMING), are currently breaking down the engines to determine if a mechanical malfunction had occurred.

The CAAP had also secured the aircraft record and logbooks, as well as summary records of the training experience of the crew.      – Aie Balagtas See