TUBA, Benguet — A routine cross-country navigation drill turned tragic in the rugged peaks of the Cordillera region. Two Philippine Air Force (PAF) pilots were killed after their military trainer aircraft crashed into a mountainous section of Benguet province on Wednesday morning.
PAF spokesperson Col. Ma. Christina Basco confirmed the fatalities hours after search and rescue units reached the remote crash site, expressing deep institutional grief over the sudden loss of the aviators.
The fallen airmen were formally identified by the military on Wednesday evening as First Lieutenant Ruth Angelique R. Pasos and Second Lieutenant Cherky E. Embudo. Both pilots were highly capable officers assigned to the Air Education and Training Command based at Fernando Air Base in Lipa City, Batangas:
- The Fleet Formation: The aircraft—an Italian-designed Siai-Marchetti SF-260 trainer plane with tail number 10-39—was flying as part of a large formation of 10 to 11 aircraft executing long-distance navigation training.
- The Flight Route: The fleet took off from Lipa City and was tracking north toward Baguio City to hone the situational awareness of pilots navigating complex, high-altitude mountainous terrains.
- The Disappearance: The aircraft abruptly lost radio communication with air traffic controllers just minutes before its scheduled arrival at Baguio’s Loakan Airport.
[ FERNANDO AIR BASE, LIPA ] ──► Formation of 10+ SF-260 Planes Take Off ──► En Route to Loakan Airport │ ▼ (Minutes Before Arrival)[ TUBA, BENGUET CRASH SITE ] ◄── Wreckage Located on Steep Terrain ◄── Radio Silence & Loss of Contact
According to Benguet provincial police spokesperson Lt. Col. Roy Calulot, the aircraft went down at approximately 10:20 a.m. on the slopes of Mt. Sto. Tomas, located in Sitio Cabuyao within Tuba’s Barangay Poblacion.
[ EMERGENCY RESPONSE ACTION COMPLEX ]
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[ THE IMPACT MATRIX ] [ THE RESCUE EFFORT ]
• Aircraft impacted a steep, heavily wooded mountainside • Combined teams from the PNP, BFP, and municipal
at roughly 10:20 a.m. disaster units (MDRRMO) deployed.
• Initial delayed reporting meant local rescuers were • Local villagers assisted emergency crews in
notified until 11:40 a.m. maneuvering through vertical terrain gaps.
When local disaster teams and villagers finally reached the impact site through dense brush, both pilots were found unconscious with severe trauma. Emergency responders immediately administered first aid on-site before executing a difficult extraction to transport the victims for emergency medical treatment, where they were later pronounced dead. Fortunately, no ground casualties or property damage were reported in the immediate vicinity of the village.
The SF-260 light aircraft is a foundational cornerstone of the PAF’s operational instruction program, universally utilized to filter and prepare young military aviators before they transition to high-performance transport helicopters or supersonic fighter jets.
The Air Force has suspended further training flights for the specific aircraft class while a specialized aircraft mishap board conducts an investigation to pinpoint the underlying cause of the crash. Moving forward, investigators will analyze whether the accident stemmed from a sudden mechanical failure or structural breakdown, or if the pilots suffered spatial disorientation due to volatile micro-weather conditions and cloud pockets common across the Cordillera mountain ranges.