4 rescued after light plane crash-lands near Zamboanga City shore

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Tuesday morning, July 7, rescued 4 people after a training plane crash-landed into waters near the Zamboanga City shore. 

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) said in a statement that a training aircraft of Royhle Aviation Academy, Incorporated, a flying school in Dumaguete City, ditched near the sea wall of Sinunuc Boulevard in Zamboanga City at around 9:45 am on Tuesday.

The CAAB said the aircraft carried two flight instructors, a student co-pilot, and a mechanic. It took off from Zamboanga Airport at 9:38 am and was bound for Dumaguete Airport when the incident happened.

The Philippine Coast Guard District in Southwestern Mindanao rescued the 4 passengers, who were all unharmed.

“According to its pilot, the emergency landing is caused by the left engine’s failure a few minutes after they took off from the said airport,” the PCG said in a Facebook post.

The PCG added that when its rescue teams arrived in the area, the plane was at a depth of 6 feet and was 6 meters way from the shoreline.

The CAAP said the Aircraft Accident Investigation and Inquiry Board (AAIIB) investigators had been tasked to help determine the cause of the incident.

The PCG said that as a precautionary measure, the Marine Environmental Protection Unit (MEPU) of the PCG District-Southwestern Mindanao deployed an oil spill boom as the plane had a full tank.– Rappler.com