Pilot killed, student hurt as trainer aircraft crashes in Bulacan airport

A pilot was killed while a student pilot was seriously hurt Tuesday  when the plane they were practicing “touch-and-go” maneuvers on, faltered and  crashed at the runway of an airport in Bulacan.

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) said the Cessna trainer aircraft, a small single propeller airplane, was a total wreck when it crashed at around 4:45 p.m.,Tuesday, at the end of the runway of the Plaridel Airport in Barangay Agnaya.

The CAAP area manager, Eduardo Lansang, said the pilot, identified as Capt. Arthur Rebollido, was dead on arrival at a hospital.  The student pilot, James Oquialda, who sustained a fractured skull, was under observation at a hospital, Tuesday night. Lansang said doctors have been trying to stop the internal bleeding of Oquialda before transferring him to a bigger hospital.

Both men were pulled from the wreckage and brought to the nearest hospital for treatment.

The CAAP-ORCC report said that the trainer aircraft was in the middle of performing “touch-and-go” exercises when the plane dipped too low and crashed.

A “touch-and-go” exercise or a circuit is commonly practiced in flying schools and involves landing on a runway and taking off without stopping and then repeating the maneuver.