A Huey helicopter crashed yesterday afternoon in Tanay, Rizal, killing a Philippine Air Force (PAF) pilot and two of his crew members and injuring a co-pilot, the military reported.
The military withheld the names of the victims as their families have yet to be informed of the incident.
The injured crew member was taken to the AFP Medical Center for treatment.
1Lt. Xy-zon Meneses, 2nd Infantry Division spokesman, said that based on reports he received, the incident happened at Sitio Hilltop, Barangay Sampaloc, Tanay, Rizal, at about 3 p.m.
It was learned that the pilot and crew of the Huey helicopter had just concluded a training on Air to Ground and Disaster Rescue Operation (AGOS) Training at Camp Capinpin when it crashed.
The training included 60 soldiers from the 2nd ID and 12 policemen from Region IV-A (Calabarzon PNP).
“The venue of the training is in Camp Capinpin. They already concluded the practical exercise; unfortunately one of the choppers experienced trouble while landing,” Meneses said.
Meneses said the training was part of the 2nd ID, Southern Luzon Command (Solcom) and PNP preparations for any eventualities during military/police operations and disaster rescue operations.
“Unfortunately, an accident occurred while the chopper was about to land. We did not expect this to happen,” Meneses said.
An investigation on the incident is underway.