Hard airport landing damages plane's wheel

CEBU, Philippines - Some flight schedules at the Mactan Cebu International Airport yesterday were momentarily disrupted yesterday due to an accidental hard landing of a light aircraft piloted by a student in training.

Runway 4 of MCIA had to be closed from 5:53 to 6:22 in the afternoon yesterday to remove the Cessna 172 aircraft with registration number RPC 4433 after the main right wheel got busted as a result of the hard landing.

The plane took off around 4:27 and landed at 5:52 in the afternoon but with its wheel already busted. It was piloted by Manish Ratna Shakya, a Nepalese and student of the Avian Tour training site.

He was with pilot-in-command Capt. Allan Co during the course of the flight, both were not injured.

MCIA Operation Center officer on-duty Estrellita Ybañez reported that a Qatar Airlines flight to Doha departed at 6:36 p.m., 16 minutes late, while Cebu Pacific flight 597 to Davao took off at 6:33 p.m., 13 minutes late, after both planes had to wait until the runway was cleared.

MCIA Domestic Operation Manager Samuel Elle said that the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines still has to investigate the incident.

Elle said that MCIA might ask CAAP to review the procedures regarding flying schools, specifically whether students should be allowed to land the plane. —Jessica Ann R. Pareja/BRP (THE FREEMAN)