CAAP extends Topflite training ops suspension

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) announced Monday it has extended the precautionary suspension of flight training operations at Topflite Academy of Aviation Inc. (TAAI).

This follows an initial seven-day suspension after a Cessna RP-C2211 aircraft crashed during a training flight last 11 July.

“CAAP has deemed it necessary to extend the suspension until the investigation into the training program is completed and all safety and compliance issues are fully addressed,” CAAP said in a statement.

However, the agency did not provide a timeline for lifting the suspension.

To recall, the crash — which occurred around 9:31 a.m. after the aircraft departed from Subic — left four people injured and were identified as flight instructor Capt. Jacques Robert Papio and student pilots Angelo Josh Quinsasay, Althea Kisses Nunez and Jericho Palma.