Fighter jet, dead pilots recovered
(UPDATE) THE two pilots of the missing Air Force fighter jet that went missing midnight Tuesday were found dead inside the ill-fated aircraft in the forested Mount Kalatungan in Bukidnon province Wednesday. The FA-50 jet had gone missing a day earlier while on a mission to provide air support for troops fighting communist rebels in Northern Mindanao. "The bodies were found inside the aircraft. There was an attempt to open a parachute and eject," said Lt. Gen. Luis Rex Bergante, commander of Eastern Mindanao Command. "The aircraft was a total wreck. The aircraft smashed through the trees in the mountain." Bergante said bringing the servicemen's remains down the mountainside was now the top priority. The cause of the crash was under investigation, he added. Dangerous terrain Garello said earlier Wednesday that the search had been suspended overnight due to the danger of "communist groups" believed to be operating in the area. He said Tuesday that his division had called in air support during a firefight with the New People's Army. The fighters flew out of Mactan-Benito Ebuen Air Base, which shares a runway with the airport in Cebu. Air force spokeswoman Col. Consuelo Castillo told reporters it was the "first major incident involving" its squadron of FA-50s, which have been used in exercises over the disputed South China Sea. The Philippines has a dozen FA-50 jet fighters that it purchased from South Korea in the past decade, starting in 2015 for P18.9 billion ($331 million), the biggest deal under the military upgrade program. The fighters have participated in joint air patrols with treaty ally the United States over contested areas of the South China Sea, where China and the Philippines have been involved in increasingly tense confrontations. Philippine Air Force (PAF) Public Affairs Office chief Col. Consuelo Castillo said all the necessary support would be provided to the families of the dead pilots. "We also request the nation's prayers for the eternal repose of our fallen pilots, whose service and heroism we deeply honor," Castillo said. Castillo, however, could not provide any details about the cause of the FA-50 crash. The country's remaining 11 FA-50 fighter jets have been grounded pending the result of an investigation into the cause of the crash. There have been a number of deadly crashes involving Philippine military aircraft in recent years. Two navy pilots were killed in April when their Robinson R22 helicopter crashed near a market south of Manila during a training flight. Two PAF pilots were killed in January 2023 when their Marchetti SF260 turboprop plane crashed into a rice field. Bukidnon 2nd District Rep. Jonathan Keith Flores on Wednesday expressed his condolences to the families of the two pilots. "We pray for the eternal repose of the pilots' souls," Flores said. "We also pray that their families find comfort in the prayers of a grateful nation, which they served until the very end."
Tomas Kauer - Moderator 
(UPDATE) THE two pilots of the missing Air Force fighter jet that went missing midnight Tuesday were found dead inside the ill-fated aircraft in the forested Mount Kalatungan in Bukidnon province Wednesday.
The FA-50 jet had gone missing a day earlier while on a mission to provide air support for troops fighting communist rebels in Northern Mindanao.
"The bodies were found inside the aircraft. There was an attempt to open a parachute and eject," said Lt. Gen. Luis Rex Bergante, commander of Eastern Mindanao Command.
"The aircraft was a total wreck. The aircraft smashed through the trees in the mountain."
Bergante said bringing the servicemen's remains down the mountainside was now the top priority.
The cause of the crash was under investigation, he added.
Dangerous terrain
Garello said earlier Wednesday that the search had been suspended overnight due to the danger of "communist groups" believed to be operating in the area.
He said Tuesday that his division had called in air support during a firefight with the New People's Army.
The fighters flew out of Mactan-Benito Ebuen Air Base, which shares a runway with the airport in Cebu.
Air force spokeswoman Col. Consuelo Castillo told reporters it was the "first major incident involving" its squadron of FA-50s, which have been used in exercises over the disputed South China Sea.
The Philippines has a dozen FA-50 jet fighters that it purchased from South Korea in the past decade, starting in 2015 for P18.9 billion ($331 million), the biggest deal under the military upgrade program.
The fighters have participated in joint air patrols with treaty ally the United States over contested areas of the South China Sea, where China and the Philippines have been involved in increasingly tense confrontations.
Philippine Air Force (PAF) Public Affairs Office chief Col. Consuelo Castillo said all the necessary support would be provided to the families of the dead pilots.
"We also request the nation's prayers for the eternal repose of our fallen pilots, whose service and heroism we deeply honor," Castillo said.
Castillo, however, could not provide any details about the cause of the FA-50 crash.
The country's remaining 11 FA-50 fighter jets have been grounded pending the result of an investigation into the cause of the crash.
There have been a number of deadly crashes involving Philippine military aircraft in recent years.
Two navy pilots were killed in April when their Robinson R22 helicopter crashed near a market south of Manila during a training flight.
Two PAF pilots were killed in January 2023 when their Marchetti SF260 turboprop plane crashed into a rice field.
Bukidnon 2nd District Rep. Jonathan Keith Flores on Wednesday expressed his condolences to the families of the two pilots.
"We pray for the eternal repose of the pilots' souls," Flores said. "We also pray that their families find comfort in the prayers of a grateful nation, which they served until the very end."
