Engine trouble eyed in John Hay plane crash

MANILA, Philippines - The twin-engine Piper Aztec that crashed in Camp John Hay last Sunday could have experienced engine trouble right after take-off because it had difficulty gaining altitude, plunging into a wooded area of the former American recreational base and killing two of the six persons on board.

The pilot, Col. Reynaldo Garcia, did not even have the time to call the Loakan Control tower to report his condition, according to aviation sources.

Garcia and Vanessa Cabiso were airlifted to St. Luke’s hospital in Taguig City yesterday morning for confinement. Ereneo Yabot is reportedly in critical condition and recuperating in Baguio Medical Center (BMC) with Josephine Miranda.

Another passenger, Grace Alvarez, expired at 6:45 p.m. Sunday and Mon Haranas was pronounced dead upon arrival at the BMC.

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAAP) is now transcribing the tape recorder of the airport control tower at Loakan to find any hint as to the airplane’s last moment before it went down, according to CAAP Director General Ramon Gutierrez.

The CAAP officially reported yesterday that two have died in the crash and the four remaining survivors are at the Baguio General Hospital in stable condition. Yabot, according to CAAP, remains in serious case.

Cabiso reportedly suffered fractures at the back and collarbone, while Garcia suffered burns in various parts of the body.

Based on the report by Loakan Airport officer-in-charge, Capt. Egon Nile Jordan, Gutierrez said that the twin-engine airplane took off at 2:45 p.m. Sunday on runway 27 bound for Plaridel Airport in Bulacan.

The traffic controller on duty (Loakan), in his report to CAAP, said that the airplane was observed not gaining altitude and remained at the treetop level over Camp John Hay. Three minutes after take-off, the plane vanished from the controller’s sight.

“Very shortly thereafter, air traffic controller on duty saw smoke coming from Camp John Hay area and alerted the crash and fire rescue unit and other related agencies,” the report said.

At 2:55 p.m., the control tower received a telephone call from an unknown informant that an airplane had crashed at the wooded portion of the camp. The air controller dispatched a fire truck and members of the rescue team to the crash site.

Gutierrez said Jordan personally checked the status of the passengers at the two hospitals and later informed members of their respective families.     – With Artemio Dumlao