Spray plane crashes, pilot killed in Davao Norte —police

A small aerial spray plane crashed on a field early Saturday morning in Davao del Norte, killing its pilot, a police official said.

A Davao del Norte Police official on Super Radyo dzBB identified the lone plane occupant as Jessie Lagapas, 25, who piloted the single-engine spray plane.

An initial investigation showed that the spray plane crashed into a field in Purok 1 of Barangay Mangalcal, Carmen town in Davao del Norte at about 6:33 a.m.

Rescuers rushed the pilot to a nearby hospital but he was declared dead shortly after arrival.

The plane was on a routine spraying mission over a banana plantation in the area when it crashed.

Police have cordoned off the crash area while waiting for the arrival of personnel from the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines to investigate the cause of the crash. —LBG/KG, GMA News