Plane crashes in Rizal, one killed

By Ronron
May 17, 2005

A Bonanza V35 aircraft carrying loads of fish from Palawan crashed Tuesday evening in a mountainous area in Morong, Rizal.

The pilot, Capt. Felimon Mendoza, was instantly killed while the plane was in total wreck, said Rizal Provincial Police Director S/Supt. Leocadio Santiago.

Mendoza's body was said to be crushed.

The eight-seater fixed wing aircraft, with tail number RP C639, showed signs of engine trouble or loss of fuel, said Santiago, based on accounts of local residents who heard the engine conked before plunging into the hilly area of Sitio Agas, Barangay San Guillermo, Morong at around 6:20 pm.

But Air Force spokesman Lt. Col. Restituto Padilla theorized the plane could have crashed due to the severe weather disturbance prevailing at the place of accident.

Heavy rain and thunderstorms hit Rizal, Metro Manila and other neighboring provinces yesterday evening after long weeks of extremely dry season.

Padilla said the rescue team of the Air Force were not even able to land at the crash site last night due to the weather.

The aircraft, owned and operated by Bonanza Air Services, came from Sandoval, Palawan and was bound for Manila.

Yesterday's crash came a day after a Cessna plane ditched into the waters of Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay, killing two people.

On May 8, four persons were also killed when another aircraft crashed in a hilly portion of Tanauan City, Batangas.

And two weeks earlier, a military chopper crashed in Gabaldon, Nueva Ecija while conducting aerial survey. Nine people died in that accident, including the country's famous seismologist, Dr. Raymundo Punongbayan./DMS