Radio communication in Bulacan chopper crash to be reviewed

CRASH SITE The wreckage of the helicopter, which crashed on Thursday and killed Liberato Laus, his driver-bodyguard and its pilot, lies on its side half-submerged in the murky water of a fishpond in Barangay Anilao, City of Malolos, Bulacan province. —RICHARD A. REYES

CITY OF MALOLOS—Investigators on Friday said they would look into the radio communication between the pilot and the airport control tower to determine what caused the helicopter that carried businessman Liberato “Levy” Laus and two others to crash here on Thursday.

Eric Apolonio, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (Caap) spokesperson, said they would review the radio links between the Eurocopter H130 T2 chopper and the control tower before the aircraft plunged into a fishpond here.

Aside from Laus, the crash also killed his bodyguard, Wilfran Esteban, and the chopper’s pilot, Capt. Ever Coronel.

Caap air crash investigator, Harry Paradero, said they had ruled out weather condition or overloading as cause of the crash.

He said the chopper had a maximum carrying capacity of seven passengers.

He also said investigators would reassemble the retrieved parts of the aircraft and “subject these to a thorough investigation.”

The helicopter left the Ninoy Aquino International Airport at 12:28 p.m. on Thursday for the City of San Fernando in Pampanga province.—CARMELA REYES-ESTROPE