29 killed in Philippines Troop Plane Crash

[ASEAN NOW News]

View of the site after a Philippines Air Force Lockheed C-130 plane carrying troops crashed on landing in Patikul, Sulu province,

Philippines July 4, 2021. Armed Forces of the Philippines - Joint Task Force Sulu

 

MANILA, July 4 (Reuters) - At least 29 people were killed on Sunday when a Philippines Air Force plane carrying troops crashed on landing and broke up in flames, the country's worst military air disaster in nearly 30 years.

 

Pictures from the scene showed flames and smoke pouring from wreckage strewn among trees as men in combat uniform milled around, while a column of thick black smoke rose from the coconut palms into the sky.

 

 

The Lockheed C-130 transport aircraft carrying troops bound for counter-insurgency operations crashed with 96 aboard at Patikul in the far southern province of Sulu.

 

The army in the sprawling Philippine archipelago has been fighting a long war against Islamist militants from Abu Sayyaf and other factions.

 

Twenty-nine bodies were retrieved and 50 people had been taken to hospital, leaving 17 unaccounted for, the military said in a statement, adding there was still hope for survivors.

 

 

"A number of soldiers were seen jumping out of the aircraft before it hit the ground, sparing them from the explosion caused by the crash," the unit, the Joint Task Force Sulu, said in the statement.

 

Military chief Cirilito Sobejana said the plane had "missed the runway trying to regain power".

 

A military spokesman, Colonel Edgard Arevalo, said there was no sign of any attack on the plane, but a crash investigation had yet to begin and efforts were focused on rescue and treatment.

 

The military command said the soldiers aboard had the rank of private, and were being deployed to their battalions. They were flying to the pvorincial airport of Jolo from Laguindingan, about 460 km (290 miles) to the northeast.

 

"They were supposed to join us in our fight against terrorism," said Commander William N. Gonzales of Joint Task Force Sulu.

Jolo island is about 950 km (600 miles) south of the capital, Manila.

 

Similar type Lockheed C-130H

 

The Lockheed C-130H Hercules aircraft, with registration 5125, had only recently arrived in the Philippines.

 

It was one of two aircraft provided by the U.S. government through the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, a government website said in January. It quoted an air force spokesman as saying the aircraft would boost capability for heavy airlift missions.

 

 

The website C-130.net said the plane that crashed had first flown in 1988. The model is a workhorse for armed forces around the world.

 

The Philippines armed forces have had a patchy air safety record. Last month a Black Hawk helicopter crashed during a training mission, killing six people.

 

A Philippines Air Force C-130 crash in 1993 killed 30 people. A 2008 crash of the civilian variant of the Lockheed plane flown by the Philippines Air Force killed 11 people, the Aviation Safety Network says.

 

The country's worst plane crash was that of an Air Philippines Boeing 737 in 2000, which killed 131 people.

 

Reporting by Karen Lema in Manila and Maria Ponnezhath in Bengaluru; Writing by Matthew Tostevin; Editing by William Mallard and Clarence Fernandez

 

 

[webfact]

Some Philippine troops jump before military plane crashes in flames, killing at least 45

By Karen Lema

 

Army personnel work at the site after a Philippines Air Force Lockheed C-130 plane carrying troops crashed on landing in Patikul, Sulu province, Philippines July 4, 2021. Armed Forces of the Philippines - Joint Task Force Sulu/Handout via REUTERS

 

MANILA (Reuters) -A Philippines Air Force troop plane crashed and broke up in flames on a southern island on Sunday, killing at least 45 people after some jumped free, officials said, in the country's worst military air disaster in nearly 30 years.

 

Pictures from the scene showed flames and smoke pouring from wreckage strewn among coconut palms as men in combat uniform milled around, while a column of thick black smoke rose into the sky.

 

The Lockheed C-130 transport aircraft, carrying troops bound for counter-insurgency operations, crashed with 96 people on board.

 

The plane had attempted to land at Jolo airport, but overshot the runway without touching down. It failed to regain enough power and height and crashed at nearby Patikul.

 

"A number of soldiers were seen jumping out of the aircraft before it hit the ground, sparing them from the explosion caused by the crash," the Joint Task Force Sulu said in a statement.

 

It was not immediately clear how many jumped or whether they had survived.

Military chief Cirilito Sobejana said the plane had "missed the runway trying to regain power".

 

The Department of National Defence said 45 people had been killed, including three civilians on the ground, while 53 were injured, including four civilians. Five military personnel were still missing.

 

A military spokesman, Colonel Edgard Arevalo, said there was no sign of any attack on the plane, but an investigation had yet to begin as efforts were focused on rescue and treatment.

 

The military command said the soldiers aboard had the rank of private and were being deployed to their battalions. They were flying to the provincial airport of Jolo from Laguindingan, about 460 km (290 miles) to the northeast.

 

The army in the sprawling Philippine archipelago has been fighting a long war against Islamist militants from Abu Sayyaf and other factions.

 

"They were supposed to join us in our fight against terrorism," said Commander William N. Gonzales of Joint Task Force Sulu.

 

Jolo airport has a 1,200-metre runway that usually takes civilian turboprop flights though occasionally some military flights, according to a Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines spokesperson.

 

Jolo island, part of the Sulu archipelago, is about 950 km (600 miles) south of the capital, Manila.

 

The Lockheed C-130H Hercules aircraft, with registration 5125, had only recently arrived in the Philippines.

 

It was one of two aircraft provided by the U.S. government through the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, a government website said in January. It quoted an air force spokesman as saying the aircraft would boost capability for heavy airlift missions.

 

The website C-130.net said the plane that crashed had first flown in 1988. The model is a workhorse for armed forces around the world.

 

The Philippines armed forces have a patchy air safety record. Last month a Black Hawk helicopter crashed during a training mission, killing six people.

 

A Philippines Air Force C-130 crash in 1993 killed 30 people. A 2008 crash of the civilian variant of the Lockheed plane flown by the Philippines Air Force killed 11 people, the Aviation Safety Network says.

 

The country's worst plane crash was that of an Air Philippines Boeing 737 in 2000, which killed 131 people.

 

(Reporting by Karen Lema in Manila and Maria Ponnezhath in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Neil Jerome Morales: Writing by Matthew Tostevin; Editing by William Mallard, Clarence Fernandez and Nick Macfie)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2021-07-05

 

[smedly]

RIP

[Tarteso]

Terrifying experience must be trying to survive jumping from a falling plane ... RIP
 

 

[webfact]

Philippines orders probe after military plane crash kills 50

By Karen Lema and Enrico Dela Cruz

 

View of the site after a Philippines Air Force Lockheed C-130 plane carrying troops crashed on landing in Patikul, Sulu province, Philippines July 4, 2021. Armed Forces of the Philippines - Joint Task Force Sulu/Handout via REUTERS

 

MANILA (Reuters) -Philippine authorities ordered on Monday an investigation into the crash of an Air Force plane that overshot a runway killing 47 soldiers on board, three civilians on the ground and injuring dozens.

 

Some passengers on the Lockheed C-130 jumped free seconds before the plane crashed and burst into flames on the weekend, officials cited witnesses as saying.

 

The aircraft, carrying recently graduated troops bound for counter-insurgency operations, had been trying to land at Jolo airport in southern Sulu province.

 

All 96 passengers on board had been accounted for, with 49 military personnel injured as well as four civilians on the ground, military spokesman Major General Edgard Arevalo said.

 

In a news conference, Arevalo said the plane was in "very good condition" and had 11,000 flying hours remaining before its next maintenance was due.

 

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

Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana ordered an investigation into the country's worst military air disaster in nearly 30 years.

 

The military command said the soldiers were flying to the provincial airport of Jolo from Laguindingan, about 460 km (290 miles) to the northeast, to be deployed to their battalions.

 

 

The army in the sprawling Philippine archipelago has been fighting a long war in the area against Islamist militants from Abu Sayyaf and other factions.

 

There was no sign the plane was brought down by insurgent fire, officials said.

 

"We assure our people that we are transparent and the results of the investigation (will be made) available when completed," added Arevalo, saying that authorities were still searching for the flight recorders.

 

Jolo airport has a 1,200-metre runway that usually takes civilian turboprop flights though occasionally some military flights, according to a Civil Aviation Authority of the

The Lockheed aircraft had only recently arrived in the Philippines and was one of two provided by the U.S. government through the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, a government website said in January.

 

It quoted an Air Force spokesman as saying the aircraft would boost capability for heavy airlift missions.

 

The website C-130.net said the plane that crashed had first flown in 1988. The model is a workhorse for armed forces around the world.

 

The Philippines armed forces have a patchy air safety record. Last month a Black Hawk helicopter crashed during a training mission, killing six people.

 

A Philippines Air Force C-130 crash in 1993 killed 30 people. A 2008 crash of the civilian variant of the Lockheed plane flown by the Philippines Air Force killed 11 people, the Aviation Safety Network says.

 

The country's worst plane crash was that of an Air Philippines Boeing 737 in 2000, which killed 131 people.

 

(Writing by Karen Lema, Ed Davies; Editing by Stephen Coates)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2021-07-05

[tifino]

 need to search wider... the survivors are still Running...  

 

 

remember decades ago we had a Macchi jet trainer land with its wheels still up... by the time the Macchi had Stopped, and the  Firies getting to the 'plane... the pilot was nowhere to be seen! 

 - the Firies certainly got their daily exercise quota filled - running after him

 

[PETERTHEEATER]

31 minutes ago, webfact said:

In a news conference, Arevalo said the plane was in "very good condition" and had 11,000 flying hours remaining before its next maintenance was due.

If they only carry out maintenance at 11000 hour intervals it was doomed from the start!

[tifino]

the Maintenance Hours per Flight Hours of aircraft varies with Model and the Military Service flying it . Civvies may work with a 50 hrs and 100 hours interval, whereas Military an can be quite different...   In OZ the RAAF has on one of their C130 Major Intervals computed in Weeks Not Hours i.e currently 30 Weeks of flying, soon to be increased to 38 weeks 

(one can do a lot of flying in 38 weeks, even though you'd have to be up in the air 24/7, to meet that 38weeks equivalent of 6834 Hrs)  

[bangon04]

8 hours ago, PETERTHEEATER said:

If they only carry out maintenance at 11000 hour intervals it was doomed from the start!

"The website C-130.net said the plane that crashed had first flown in 1988. "

 

but but the Americans gave it to us....  Do you mean we have to maintain it ourselves????

[hotchilli]

19 hours ago, PETERTHEEATER said:

If they only carry out maintenance at 11000 hour intervals it was doomed from the start!

Made me raise an eyebrow too.... 

[IAMHERE]

On 7/5/2021 at 2:19 AM, PETERTHEEATER said:

If they only carry out maintenance at 11000 hour intervals it was doomed from the start!

Yes, I imagine they meant 'complete overhaul'. I'm sure they do regular routine maintenance of some sort. 

[billd766]

On 7/5/2021 at 2:19 PM, PETERTHEEATER said:

If they only carry out maintenance at 11000 hour intervals it was doomed from the start!

That would probably be the next major overhaul and complete strip down.

 

Aircraft are serviced at intervals laid down depending on the type of use they get. They get a before and after flight check on a daily basis, and then on the number of hours flown or landings and take offs. The engines also get a daily check and bigger services depending on the number of engine hours run as laid down by the engine manufacturer.

 

As it had recently been released by the USAF to the Philippines it would have had a major strip, refurbish and rebuild in the US before being handed over.

[MaxYakov]

This article is incorrect in stating that the plane did not touch down on the runway. I saw the video that was made when the plane came in and it definitely did touch down.

 

I have listened to an expert who has flown this type of aircraft (Juan Brown - blancoliero channel on you-know-what a current professional airline pilot) and had made comments about what he calls an 'assault landing' (STOL - Stort TakeOff & Landing). He went into fair detail about what COULD go wrong with an 'assault landing' of a c130 without speculating about what DID go wrong with this particular 'assault landing'. Juan's latest evaluation was that he believed the aircraft came in with too high a speed. That was his opinion and he did not make any definite statements about what happened after the touch down of the aircraft.

 

Anyway, RIP the victims and condolences to those folks associated and the survivors.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited July 6, 2021 by MaxYakov