Feb. 23—THE Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) on Wednesday expressed alarm over the high number of mishaps involving Cessna planes — 33 in the last four years — based on its records.
CAAP spokesman Eric Apolonio said that based on Aircraft Accident Investigation and Inquiry Board data, there were 13 accidents, 10 incidents and 10 serious incidents involving Cessna planes of different types.
The 13 accidents recorded were two C172 (2019), three C152 (2019), one C152 (2020), two C152 (2021), one C150 (2022), one C206 (2021), one C206 (2023), and one C340 (2023).
The 10 incidents recorded were one C152 (2019), four C172 (2019), one C152 (2020), two C172 (2020), one C206 (2021), and one C172 (2022).
The 10 serious incidents recorded were one C152 (2019), two C172 (2019), two C152 (2020), one C172 (2020), one C172 (2021), one C172 (2022), and two C152 (2022).
The CAAP said aircraft accidents are occurrences wherein a person has died or seriously injured. In such cases, the aircraft has sustained damage or structural failure, and/or the aircraft is missing or completely inaccessible.
Aircraft incidents, meanwhile, are occurrences, wherein an accident was associated with the operation of an aircraft which affects or could affect the safety of operation. An example is a plane that suffered a flat tire while preparing for take off or taxiing the airport taxiway.
On the other hand, serious incidents are occurrences involving circumstances that indicate that there was a high probability of an accident. Included in this category are planes with broken landing gear or an aircraft that turned upside resulting in the injury of its passengers.
Meanwhile, the CAAP said that the search and rescue operations to reach the wreckage site of the Cessna 340 (Caravan) in Albay have continued with the help of personnel from the Philippine Army and Bureau of Fire Protection.
"Once the wreckage site has been reached and the passengers are identified, they will be airlifted to an undisclosed area for further medical assessment," it said in a statement.
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