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MANILA, Philippines – Philippine National Police (PNP) deputy chief for operations Police Lieutenant General Guillermo Eleazar on Friday visited the site where the ill-fated police chopper crashed in San Pedro, Laguna.
Eleazar leads the PNP Special Investigation Task Force created to look into the circumstances surrounding the 2-year old Bell 429 chopper crash incident which left PNP chief Police General Archie Gamboa and seven others injured.
Speaking to reporters, Eleazar said they are now collecting pieces of evidence, including statements of witnesses, passengers and first responders, in investigating the incident.
He also revealed that they have yet to find the chopper’s flight radar and black box.
“Mayroon kasing sinasabi na may flight radar and black box pero we have yet to find out. But according to the provincial director of Laguna, who happens to be a pilot, itong Bell 429 ay wala siyang black box,” he said.
Eleazar said they are considering at least three possible angles in the helicopter crash – pilot error, the chopper’s condition and the take-off site preparation.
The PNP official added they will also look into the report on the crash submitted by local investigators.
Initial investigation showed that the chopper got entangled with power lines shortly after lift-off in San Pedro town.
The take-off site was sandy and the aircraft’s propellers fanned a thick dust which caused poor visibility. The chopper caught fire later on.
Eleazar said the standard operating procedures (SOP) in utilizing PNP air assets will also be reviewed to prevent any similar incidents in the future.
“Itong ating mga air asset, isipin mo puro bago lahat yan. First time na nagkaroon tayo ng ganyan,” he said.
“Kailangan ma-review nating maigi ‘yan, pati yung based on the result of this investigation, ma-review at ma-improve ‘yung mga SOP para bumalik ating tiwala ng ating mga senior officers and other members of the PNP that will utilize our air assets,” he added.
He added that they have tapped the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines to help in the investigation.
Currently, the entire fleet of the PNP is temporarily grounded pending the investigation. – RRD (with details from Correspondent Sherwin Culubong)
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