Air Force grounds all Huey choppers as crash probe begins

Philippine Air Force chief Lt. Gen. Horacio Tolentino on Sunday ordered the grounding of all UH-IH or Huey helicopters after one of the decades-old aircraft crashed Saturday in Lapu-Lapu City, killing nine people. PAF spokesman Lt. Col. Epifanio Panzo said all the remaining 41 Huey helicopters, which provide light-lift capability to the Armed Forces – including those in the frontline –will not be allowed to fly pending an investigation on the cause of the Lapu-Lapu City tragedy. Huey helicopters are usually used in the troop insertion or transport, medical evacuation, provision of limited close-air support to troops engaged in combat, transport of VIPs, and in search and rescue operations. On Saturday afternoon, a Huey helicopter crashed on a busy road in Lapu-Lapu City, killing all the seven civilians on board two tricycles that it hit, a pilot and a crew and the wounding of the second pilot. PAF officials said the aircraft was on its way back to the Mactan Air Base in the city after a training flight when it crashed two kilometers from the Air Force facility for still undetermined reason. Tolentino said he has dispatched a team of investigators from the Air Force Safety Office and 205th Tactical Helicopter Wing “to conduct the investigation on the incident and I ordered the grounding of all UH-1H helicopters nationwide." “The result of the investigation will be opened and will be made known to each and everyone of you as soon as it is completed by our investigators," said Tolentino who flew to Lapu-Lapu City to condole with the families of the deceased. “On behalf of the Philippine Air Force, I express my deepest sympathy to the families of all the victims of this tragic accident and we promise to extend whatever help the Air Force can give to the bereaved families," added Tolentino. Panzo said the grounding of aircraft is normal whenever one of type crashes. “That (grounding) is SOP (standard operating procedure, it may last for several days until the investigation is completed," said Panzo. An Air Force official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that prior to the crash of the Huey helicopter, witnesses on the ground saw the aircraft avoiding kites. He said this is among the angles being looked into by probers. The source said kite strings are dangerous to aircrafts, especially if the strings are made of nylons. “Once they are entangled to the tail rotor, they (strings) can cause stoppage. They will have to look into this," he said. - GMANews.TV