PAF: Investigators at Mt. Kalatungan to probe FA-50 crash site

An investigation team has arrived at Mt. Kalatungan in Bukidnon to check the crash site of the FA-50 fighter jet, according to the Philippine Air Force (PAF) on Friday.

However, PAF spokesperson Colonel Ma. Consuelo Castillo said the military has yet to verify if the investigators have already reached the actual crash site due to poor signal in the area.

“As of kanina, nandoon na sila mismo sa Mt. Kalatungan, yung investigation team natin. But as to nandoon na sila sa mismong eksaktong crash site, we have yet to verify kasi pangit ang signal doon sa area,” Castillo told reporters.

(Earlier, our investigation team was at Mt. Kalatungan. But we have yet to verify if they already reached the exact crash site because the signal in the area is poor.)

“Pero kanina, more than six hours na silang naglalakad kasi mahirap talaga ang pagpasok doon, uphill pa. Yun nga lang downhill na pagbaba ng mga cadavers around five hours,” she added.

(But earlier, they had been walking towards the crash site for more than six hours because it was really difficult to get there uphill. When the cadavers were carried downhill, it already took around five hours.)

According to Castillo, the investigators will inspect the pieces of the wreckage, point of impact, among others.

Castillo said strict security is being implemented for the entry of individuals to the area to preserve the crash site and avoid compromising the evidence.

“We don't want to compromise our area. ‘Di ba kapag crime scene ng mga SOCO [Scene of the Crime Operatives], they don't let people in because they don't want to compromise the site of the accident or the incident because kasi baka may magagalaw na parts na very critical for the investigation,” she said.

(We don't want to compromise our area. It is like at the crime scene of SOCO personnel, they don't let people in because they don't want to compromise the site of the accident or the incident because they might move some things that are very critical for the investigation.)

“That's the reason why we just don't let other people in. We have a very tight security for these areas,” she added.

Aside from this, Castillo said the military also has a concern that some individuals might take the explosives loaded in the crashed aircraft.

Meanwhile, Castillo said the remains of the two pilots were already undergoing a forensic examination in Cagayan de Oro City in Misamis Oriental for the validation of their identities.

The FA-50 fighter jet with tail number 002 went missing early Tuesday morning during a tactical night operation in support of ground troops, according to the PAF.

“Shortly after midnight on March 4, 2025, an FA-50 fighter jet, went missing during a Tactical Night Operations. The aircraft lost communication with the rest of the flight involved in the mission minutes before reaching the target area,” Castillo earlier said.

On Wednesday morning, the aircraft was found wrecked with two cadavers in the vicinity of the Mt. Kalatungan Complex.

“Shortly after midnight on March 4, 2025, an FA-50 fighter jet, went missing during a Tactical Night Operations. The aircraft lost communication with the rest of the flight involved in the mission minutes before reaching the target area,” said Castillo

A search and rescue operation was launched involving the PAF, Philippine Army, and local civilian volunteers in the mountainous terrain of Bukidnon.

The possible location was detected as the pilots’ personal locator beacons were emitting signals. — BAP, GMA Integrated News