WORLD> Asia-Pacific
Philippines in search of missing presidential chopper
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-04-08 13:51

MANILA -- Rescuers trekked early Wednesday kilometric trails up Mountain Tinok in the northern Philippine Ifugao province to search for the missing helicopter carrying six people, including senior presidential security officers, staff officials and a press undersecretary, police said.

Police Officer Tony Mosquiera of the Cordillera Autonomous Region said officials of people from the mountainous villages at Mt. Tinok reported to authorities that they saw the Presidential helicopter late Tuesday afternoon crash somewhere along the foggy forested terrains of Mt. Tinok.

Mosquiera said he is still waiting for direct information from rescuers who trekked to the reported wreck site by Wednesday noon and it could take a few more hours.

The aircraft, a Bell 412, was declared missing Tuesday night after it failed to land in Banaue, Ifugao barely an hour after it took off from Baguio City's Loakan Airport.

Among those in the chopper were President Gloria Macapagal- Arroyo's Undersecretary Marilou Frostrom of the Presidential Management Staff (PMS), Press Undersecretary Jose Capadocia Jr., Assistant Director Perlita Bandayanon of the PMS' office of regional concerns, Brigadier General Carlos Clet, of the Presidential Security Group, and two Air force pilots.

Local media reported that a "slacken" Arroyo canceled the scheduled trip to Banaue after the crash and personally oversaw the rescue operations to recover the presidential staff close to her.

Brig. Gen. Lino Horacio Lapinid, commander of the 1st Air Division, said the Air Force dispatched six helicopters to search the missing chopper and has requested assistance from the US soldiers who are in town for the annual US-Philippine joint military exercise to be held in mid-April.