Members of the search and rescue team before their deployment. Photo courtesy of CAAP
CAAP identifies plane wreckage in Mayon
THE Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) Aircraft Accident Investigation and Inquiry Board (AAIIB) has identified the aircraft’s wreckage at the Mayon Volcano.
The AAIIB, part of the search and rescue (SAR) operations for the missing plane over the weekend, said that the wreckage belonged to the Cessna 340 (Caravan) aircraft (RP-C2080).
CAAP said the wreckage site is located at the west side slope of Mayon Volcano at the elevation of 3500-4000 ft.
The wreckage was identified using a high resolution camera.
As of this writing, the condition of the crew and passengers is not yet known, as the SAR team has not yet reached the exact site due to bad weather.
Earlier on Tuesday, the SAR team launched three attempts that failed to reach the wreckage site due to intensified winds.
The SAR team utilized a Philippine Air Force (PAF) Black Hawk helicopter and a Philippine Navy AW109 aircraft in the operations.
The CAAP Aviation Records Management Division (ARMD) database, Textron Aviation (formerly Cessna), has 151 actively registered aircraft with CAAP.
They added that the missing Cessna aircraft, operated by the Energy Development Corporation (EDC), complies with CAAP’s airworthiness certification.
The CAAP Airworthiness Department is responsible for the certification, continuous inspection, and surveillance of certified air operators on airworthiness aspects as well as in the issuance, renewal, and validation of certificates of airworthiness.
A notice to airmen (NOTAM) (B0614/23) is in place advising flight operations to avoid flying close to the volcano’s summit as the volcano is on Alert Level 2 (increased unrest), and ash from any sudden eruption can be hazardous to aircraft.
