Crashed military plane tried to land with incomplete set of wheels — witness
KORONADAL CITY, Philippines — A Tausug woman said Monday she saw only one set of the side wheels of the C-130 military plane protruding while descending on the airport before it crashed Sunday in Sulu province.
Alicia Jamdan, residing in Barangay Bangcal in Patikul, near the spot where the Hercules C-130 plane full of soldiers fell and burst into flames, told Catholic Station dxOM via a phone-patched interview she is certain the large Hercules C-130 aircraft crashed due to a mechanical problem.
“We could see from our village planes landing and taking off from the nearby Jolo airport. It was my first time to see a plane landing with an incomplete set of wheels coming out while going down on the runway,” Jandan told Catholic Station dxOM on Monday morning.
The accident caused the deaths of at least 50 soldiers, including the plane’s eight-member crew led by pilots Major Emmanuel Makalintal, Major Michael Vincent Benolerao and 1Lt. Karl Joseph Hintay.
Their subordinates, Air Force Sergeants Donald Badoy, Jan Neil Macapaz, Michael Bulalaque, Jack Navarro and Airman 1st Class Fortunato Regidor and a military nurse, 1Lt Sheena Alexandrae Tato, also died in the crash.
Bangsamoro Local Government Minister Naguib Sinarimbo said Monday they were saddened with the incident.
“The government of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao share with the grief of the families of the fatalities in the plane crash,” Sinarimbo, BARMM regional spokesperson, said.
North Cotabato Vice Gov. Emmylou Taliño Mendoza and South Cotabato Gov. Reynaldo Tamayo, Jr. have separately condoled with the families of the plane crash victims via media outfits in central Mindanao.
“We are praying for the families of the departed, praying for them to overcome their pain. We also pray for the injured who are now in hospitals. We are wishing for their immediate recovery,” Mendoza said.
Sinarimbo said the BARMM health ministry is extending assistance to the injured soldiers confined in hospitals in Sulu, a component province of BARMM.
Follow this thread for updates on search and rescue operations and other updates on the Philippine Air Force C-130 that crashed near Jolo, Sulu on July 4, 2021.
Photo: In this handout photo taken on July 4, 2021 and received from the Philippine military Joint Task Force-Sulu (JTF-Sulu), smoke billows from the wreckage of a Philippine Airforce C-130 transport plane after it crashed near the airport in Jolo town, Sulu province on the southern island of Mindanao.
The widow of Sulu plane crash fatality Cpl. Reynel Matundin is ranting over what is for her slow process in identifying the remains of her husband.
Annie Matundin, a resident of Kabacan town in North Cotabato, tells Catholic Station dxND here Friday that it was only yesterday that police forensic experts sent to Manila the DNA samples collected from her husband’s parents and the victim’s dental records for evaluation.
“It’s almost two weeks now since that plane crash happened. We don’t know what’s next. We are so anxious and sometimes we in the family get so depressed,” she says.
— The STAR/John Unson
The Armed Forces of the Philippines names 19 of the 49 military personnel who died in the C-130 plane crash in Patikul, Sulu last Sunday.
Philippine Air Force
- Major Emmanuel Makalintal
- Major Michael Vincent Benolerao
- First Lieutenant Joseph Hintay
- Technical Sergeant Mark Anthony Agana
- Technical Sergeant Donald Badoy
- Staff Sergeant Jan Neil Macapaz
- Staff Sergeant Michael Bulalaque
- Sergeant Jack Navarro
AFP Medical Corps
- Captain Higello Emeterio
AFP Nurse Corps
- First Lieutenant Sheena Alexandria Tato
Philippine Army
- Sergeant Butch Maestro
- Private First Class Christopher Rollon
- Private First Class Felixzalday Provido
- Private Raymar Carmona
- Private Vic Monera
- Private Mark Nash Lumanta
- Private Jomar Gabas
- Private Marcelino Alquisar
- Private Mel Mark Angana
As of 6 p.m. Monday, the number of fatalities from the Sulu plane crash has risen to 52.
The military says among the fatalities, 49 were military personnel while three were civilians.
The military also raised the number of injured to 51, 47 of which are military personnel while four are civilians.
Sen. Risa Hontiveros condoles with the families of those killed in the C-130 crash in Sulu, saying "their sacrifice and bravery to secure our freedom will never be forgotten."
She also calls for a thorough investigation to ensure "the protection of our brave men and women in uniform in their future deployments."
"Considering this is the second plane crash in two weeks, is a disservice to our armed services if we leave them vulnerable in battle."
The number of fatalities in Sunday's Air Force plane crash in Sulu climbs to 50, Philippine military officials confirm.
Forty-seven military personnel and three civilians were among those who were killed when a C-130 cargo plane crashed in Patikul, Sulu.
Meanwhile, 49 soldiers and four civilians are injured and undergoing treatment.
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