An R44 Raven helicopter, operated by the Philippine Adventist Medical Aviation Services (PAMAS), crash landed after it made an emergency call in Sitio Babahagon, Lantapan, Bukidnon, the country's aviation regulator said on Friday.
The helicopter, with registry number RP-C189, was on its way to Mountain View College on Thursday at 9:45 a.m. with two pilots and two passengers on board.
"Fortunately, neither the pilot nor the passengers suffered major injuries. One passenger was sent to the hospital for further treatment but was not in critical condition. There were no other injuries," the Adventist.news, the official news channels of the Seventh-day Adventist church, said.
According to PAMAS, the RP-C189 took off at Lurugan Airfield in Valancia City, Bukidnon with pilot in command Captain Jared Hoewing.
The helicopter was about 3,000 feet when it began to lose power, forcing the pilot to make an emergency landing in a banana plantation about five kilometers from the airfield.
Eric Apolonio, spokesperson of the Civil Aeronautics Authority of the Philippines, said the CAAP learned about that PAMAS "did not file a flight plan for this operation," which is now under investigation. The agency said it received a verified information from Laguindingan Tower and as per Air Traffic Control on duty.
A flight plan includes the route the crew will fly and specifies altitudes and speeds. It also provides calculations for how much fuel the aircraft will use and the additional fuel it will need to carry to meet various requirements for safety.
All flights must have a flight plan filed before departure with the relevant authorities such as CAAP.
PAMAS said that it is still reeling from the previous tragedy when its "Yellow Bee" Alouette medical helicopter carrying four people has gone missing en route to a hospital in the Palawan province after picking up a patient in Barangay Mangsee in Balabac town of the same province on March 1, 2023.
CAAP said the Aircraft Accident Investigation and Inquiry Board is now conducting investigation on the incident.
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Caption:
CRASH LANDING. The R44 Raven helicopter that crash landed in a banana plantation in Sitio Babahagon, Lantapan IN Bukidnon after making an emergency landing on Thursday, July 27. (PAMAS photo)