Cessna plane overturns at Bulacan airport

A Cessna C-150 two-seater plane overtuned at the runway of the Plaridel airport in Bulacan Friday night.

The plane's passengers – a flight instructor and his student – were unharmed. Both sustained only very minor scratches despite the serious accident.

Superintendent Napoleon Cuaton of the 3rd Police Center for Aviation Security (PCAS) said Capt. Jerome Mooney and his student Jane Medina alighted from the aircraft “safe and unharmed.”

The Cessna plane turned upside down after sliding into a canal between two adjacent runways.

In a report to Philippine National Police-Aviation Security Group (PNP-ASG) director  Chief Superintendent Atilano Morada, Cuaton said the incident happened at around 6:13 p.m.

Initial investigation showed that the aircraft had already landed but was still cruising at great speed when the student pilot tried to make a turn.

The instructor tried to counter the move, causing the plane to swerve out of control.

Cuaton, in an interview with The Star, said the Air Transportation Office (ATO) is expected to investigate the incident.

“The aircraft is under repair,” he said, explaining that most flight accidents involving instructors and student pilots are caused by human error.

Cuaton said he has required all flying schools operating at the Plaridel airstrip to submit resumes and photocopies of passports of all students.

He added that the 3rd PCAS also has jurisdiction over aircraft operations like the ATO ’s role in matters of safety and security.

Last month, two Cessna planes also figured in a mid-air collision at the Plaridel airport in Bulacan.

Light aircrafts belonging to flight schools WCC Aviation Company and Fliteline Aviation were eventually grounded. 

The incident claimed the life of Patrick Philip Teruel, a flight instructor of Phoenix School of Aviation, and student pilots Reena Salve, 25, and Varsha Gopinanth, an Indian national.

The Cessna planes collided at an altitude of about 400 to 500 feet shortly after one took off from Runway 35, while the other was cleared for landing.

ATO chief Nilo Jatico formed an investigating team, which is yet to issue a final report and recommendations on the tragic incident.

He also created an ad-hoc committee tasked to focus on an integrated approach to everything like standardized management evaluation of flying schools.

The Plaridel airport is basically used as an airstrip for various flying schools which train  Filipino and foreign student pilots.