There is a high chance that the Philippine Air Force's (PAF) C-295 medium transport aircraft involved in a landing mishap in Batanes last week may be back in service, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief General Romeo Brawner Jr. said, noting that it is “repairable.”
“Yes repairable yung C-295 natin sa Batanes. Kagabi ay nai-tow na natin ito dun sa gilid ng basco airport so we can resume the Basco sSirport, can now resume operations (Yes, the C-295 involved in Batanes is repairable. Last night, we were able to tow the aircraft to the side of Basco Airport. Basco Airport can now resume its operations,” Brawner told reporters in an interview shortly after the opening rites of the AFP Joint Exercise (AJEX) DAGITPA 08-2024 in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City on Monday.
Brawner assured that the military has sufficient airlift assets available for ongoing humanitarian assistance and disaster response (HADR) efforts amid the recent onslaught of Typhoons Kristine and Leon.
He also mentioned that the PAF still has C-130 cargo aircraft currently active in HADR operations across the country.
"In anticipation of the arrival of (Tropical Storm) Marce, we have prepositioned family food packs in Batanes,” he said.
PAF spokesperson Col. Ma. Consuelo Castillo earlier stated that they are investigating the incident in which one of its C-295 transport aircraft’s nose landing gear detached while landing at Basco Airport on Friday afternoon (1 November). The aircraft was delivering family food packs from the Office of Civil Defense at the time.
Castillo said no conclusions have been reached regarding the cause of the incident as the investigation is ongoing. She also confirmed that all pilots and crew members aboard the C-295 were safe.