Authorities broaden C-130 search to cover Davao del Norte

MANILA, Philippines - Rescuers have now broadened their search area for the bodies of the crew and parts of the ill-fated plane to include waters off Davao del Norte, as search and retrieval operations continued on its fourth day. In a report aired over QTV's Balitanghali, GMA News reporter Raffy Tima said as of Friday morning, authorities have found more body parts, shoes and parts of the aircraft as authorities abandoned hopes of anyone surviving the crash. The report noted that aside from the Philippine Navy ships that circle the area, a Philippine Air Force chopper also hovers above the waters twice a day along with a Nomad plane from the Philippine Coast Guard in search for plane debris and the crewmen's remains. Rescuers are also currently coordinating with the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) following a witness’ statement that a ship passed by the plane’s crash site shortly after the plane plummeted to the waters. The exact site of the crash may be determined based on the route of the ship, said the rescue team’s commander, Navy Captain Arnel Gonzales. “So ito ngayon yung vine-verify namin with Commodore Dabin, yung Coast Guard district commander. Makita sana kung anong barko yung time na yun na papasok o papalabas para at least pwede natin makuhanan ng information kasi itong channel na to, piloting waters so most likely manned yung ano niya, yung piloting house. So any incident na diyan sa, surrounding that area, maoobserbahan," said Gonzales. A separate report by GMA News reporter Marisol Abduhraman said the Air Force has dismissed sabotage and inclement weather as the reasons for the plane crash, saying the weather was stable and security tight during the plane’s take off in the Davao International Airport . Instead, the Air Force is now investigating possibilities of human error – not just on the crew’s part but also on the team that helped them take off – and material failure. Authorities will closely inspect the recovered plane parts to determine if there was damage before the plane crashed, said the report. The report added that the Air Force also confirmed Thursday that two Army soldiers were also on the plane aside from the nine Air Force troops earlier named. Corporal Benjie Sabangan and Master Sergeant Remigio Libres reportedly got on the plane at Fort Magsaysay and was on it all the way to Manila . The soldiers reportedly guarded portable communication equipment transferred to Davao . “We are still in the process of info gathering, pieces we are gathering, wala pang talagang analysis on what we have gathered kasi bits and pieces pa lang," said Major General Jovito Gammad, head of the Air Force investigating team. In a separate report, GMA News reporter Tek Ocampo said there was no indication that the plane’s fate would be tragic based on the transcripts of communications between the C-130 crew and the control tower at the Davao International Airport . The plane took off at 8:54 pm Monday, with the crew’s last words to the people at the tower were “Good night, ma’am." Four minutes later, however, there was no answer from the crew when the tower tried to call them twice. Another call at 8:59 p.m. was likewise unanswered, but “unintelligible sounds" could be heard, said the report. The tower reportedly shifted to another frequency in its effort to get hold of the crew but there was still no response. The ill-fated C-130 aircraft was supposed to pick up members of the Presidential Security Group in Iloilo but eventually lost contact with the command center minutes after it took off from the Davao City International Airport . Authorities said the cargo plane may have crashed about 2.5 nautical miles southeast of Davao City and three nautical miles southwest of the Island Garden City of Samal. - Johanna Camille Sisante, GMANews.TV