CRASHED. The Piper Seneca six-seater plane lies in the water near the shore of Barangay Sinunuc, Zamboanga City. The aircraft crashed Tuesday (July 7, 2020) while en route to Dumaguete City. (PNA file photo by Ely E. Dumaboc)
ZAMBOANGA CITY – A team from the Aircraft Accident Inquiry Board (AAIB) is set to arrive next week to investigate the July 7 plane crash here, an official said Friday.
Antonio Alfonso, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP)-Zamboanga manager, said the probe aims to determine why the six-seater Piper Seneca plane crashed into the shore of Barangay Sinunuc.
Earlier, Alfonso said the plane did not crash but did an “emergency landing at sea” after it incurred a single-engine failure.
He said the AAIB team will determine the physical appearance of the aircraft and its engines as well as listen to the testimonies of the pilot and its passengers since the plane does not have a black box that records the communication exchanges of the pilot and the control tower.
“Basta maliit ang airplane, wala yan black box so the experts will only have to inspect and scrutinize the physical appearance of the plane,” he said.
All of the four people aboard, including three foreigners, were rescued by tricycle driver Mufri Yusop who happened to pass by the area and saw the plane went down on the water.
The occupants of the plane were Suramya khanal, 28, a Nepalese student pilot; Capt. Jyothis John Pulinthanam, 27, an Indian pilot; Jemy Chacko Domen, 34, Indian flight instructor; and, Razel Dulay, 27, a Filipino aircraft mechanic.
All of them are from the Dumaguete City-Based ROYHLE Flight Training Academy.
“Ok naman ang crew, we have taken cared of them,” Alfonso said.
He said the fate of the flying school, including a possible suspension, will depend on the findings and recommendations of the AAIB.
The plane with tail number RP-C834 was returning to Dumaguete City after delivering a trainer plane to a local flying school when it crashed into the sea. (PNA)
