Police, firefighters and disaster responders provide assistance to the Philippine Air Force team on board Sokol no. 919 that made an emergency landing at an agricultural area in Moncada, Tarlac on Thyrsday, June 13. (Photo from the Facebook page of the provincial government of Tarlac)
MABALACAT CITY. Pampanga — A Philippine Air Force (PAF) W-3A Sokol helicopter made an emergency landing Thursday morning at a farm lot in Moncada, Tarlac, due to engine trouble.
The Tarlac provincial government said the Sokol helicopter with tail number 919 experienced engine failure, forcing pilot Major Paul Christian Santos to make an emergency landing at 8:11 a.m. in the open rice field in Moncada.
It said Moncada’s municipal disaster risk reduction and management office rushed to the area and found no one hurt in the incident, as the helicopter made a safe emergency landing.
The local government said the PAF officers on board the helicopter had called for maintenance support to enable the aircraft to fly again.
It was unknown where the helicopter came from or where it was going.
From 2012 to 2013, the PAF received eight W-3A Sokol helicopters from PZL-Swidnik, the biggest helicopter manufacturer in Poland.
Three of the Sokol helicopters were involved in crashes.
On August 7, 2013, a Sokol crashed at a military camp in Marawi, Lanao del Sur. Two individuals were injured.
On November 8, 2016, a Sokol crash landed in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan. Four of its occupants suffered minor injuries.
On November 22, 2018, four people were injured when a Sokol crash landed at Crow Valley in Capas, Tarlac.
The Inquirer learned that the Sokol helicopter with tail no. 919 was subjected to a bid for spare parts for its maintenance in July 2023 with an approved budget contract of P47.4 million.
It was not immediately known if maintenance had been conducted on the Sokol helicopter.
The PAF uses Sokols in various training, rescue, and humanitarian missions and activities.
They were among the aircraft used by the PAF 505th Search and Rescue Group to put out the forest fire by dropping water from heli-buckets in Itogon, Benguet, in April.
Sokols are also being used in aerial assessment of damages brought by typhoons and other disasters.
It was also a search-and-rescue team on board a Sokol helicopter that found the Piper plane that went missing over mountainous areas of Isabela in December 2023. The team was supported by civilians on board a private R44 chopper.
Sokols were temporarily grounded in August 2014, in November 2016, and in November 2018 after the crashes. INQ
Photo attached.
Caption:
Police, firefighters, and disaster responders assist the Philippine Air Force team on board Sokol no. 919 that made an emergency landing on Thursday, June 13, at an agricultural area in Moncada, Tarlac. (Photo from the Facebook page of the provincial government of Tarlac)