Bodies of Cessna plane crash victims found in Ilocos Sur

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The bodies of the two victims in the Cessna plane crash in Santiago, Ilocos Sur were found early Saturday, October 22.

The private plane carrying pilot instructor John Kaizan Estabillo and his student, Paula Robles, had plunged into Santiago Cove at 3:30 pm on Friday, October 21, after it tripped on the zipline of Vitalis Villas resort.

The plane was found at 4 pm on Friday, but rescuers had to call off the rescue operations in the evening because of darkness and choppy waters.

They resumed their operations Saturday morning and were able to retrieve the victims’ bodies, said PTV Ylocos on its Facebook page.

PTV Ylocos also said the bodies of the victims have been brought to Candon General Hospital for autopsy.

In a statement on Saturday, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) said the trainer plane, a Cessna C172 with registry number RP-C7838, was operated by Leading Edge International Aviation.

It was “conducting a touch and go procedure at the Vigan Airport at 3:24 pm Friday and was supposed to be back [to] its homebase in San Fernando airport in La Union at 4:24 pm when the accident happened.”

The CAAP said an investigation is underway. – Rappler.com