Arevalo: C-130 in Sulu crash followed all protocols; AFP determined to know ‘what really happened’

The C-130 aircraft that crashed in Sulu which left 50 people dead followed all the protocols, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesperson Major General Edgard Arevalo said Monday.

At a press conference, Arevalo said the cause of why the aircraft went out of the runway is still being investigated.

“We are determined to find out what really transpired in this very tragic incident because according to available information the aircraft followed the specified protocol,” he said.

These protocols involve the approach speed and the landing spot of the aircraft, he added.

According to Arevalo, some pilots will assist in the investigation to determine how the crash occurred.

“But what is yet to be determined is what caused the aircraft to go out of the runway. This is going to be determined by a select group of tested pilots who will be the one to assist in the conduct of the investigation,” he added.

The AFP will also look into the blackbox or the flight data recorder that will help the investigation.

Overloading

Asked about the speculation on overloading, Arevalo said they have to wait for the result of the investigation to confirm if the flight really exceeded the desired number of passengers.

He said he is not privy of the loading capacity of the aircraft. According to him, there were 96 people based on the flight manifest including three pilots and five crew members.

Arevalo said the condition of the facility including the runway, equipment, weather, and skills of the pilots will be included in the investigation.

Citing information from the witnesses, commander of Joint Task Force Sulu Major General William Gonzales said the aircraft was able to make a landing but aborted.

“Nag-attempt itong mag-land. Nag-touch down pero na-abort. So nag-attempt ito ulit na mag-elevate o lumipad para mag-turn around ulit,” he said in an interview on GTV’s Balitanghali.

(The aircraft attempted to land. It touched down but aborted. So again it attempted to elevate or fly to turn around again.)

Just a bit higher than the trees, the aircraft flew 800 meters then it crashed, Gonzales added.

The Philippine Air Force plane crashed around 11:30 a.m. Sunday as it was making a landing in Barangay Bangkal, Patikul.

According to Arevalo, at least 47 military personnel and three civilians on the ground were killed in the crash.

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana has called for an investigation into the incident. — RSJ, GMA News