Occidental Mindoro

Crashed in unknown circumstances in the sea off Lubang Island while completing a training flight. Crew fate unknown. The exact date of the accident remains unknown, somewhere in 1997.

After touchdown at San Jose Airport, the aircraft collided with a dog. On impact, the right main gear collapsed and the aircraft came to rest on its belly. The right engine struck the ground and caught fire. All three occupants escaped uninjured while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair. The dog was killed.

Flight 785 was a scheduled domestic VFR flight from Manila to San Jose with an intermediate stop at Mamburao. The aircraft departed Manila at 1030 hours local time and arrived at Mamburao after an uneventful flight. It then took off from Mamburao at 1204 hours. At 1215 hours, the flight requested terminal weather information from San Jose Radio Station. The requested information was transmitted but was not acknowledged. A witness stated that at approximately that same time he had observed an aircraft flying at very low altitude towards the mountain on a heading of approximately 065° and that, soon after, the aircraft disappeared from sight, he heard a loud explosion coming from the mountains east of his position. Subsequent efforts of San Jose Radio Station to contact the flight on both VHF and HF frequencies proved unsuccessful. In the afternoon of 1 July 1966 the wreckage of the aircraft was found at 2,300 feet AMSL in a ravine at the northern slope of Mt Rabangan (altitude 3,500 feet) which is approximately midway between Mamburao and San Jos6 and approximately 10 nautical miles inland. Two passengers were seriously injured while 26 other occupants were killed.

On landing, the left main gear collapsed. The airplane slid for several yards before coming to rest. There were no casualties while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

While flying in poor weather conditions on a flight from Iloilo City to Manila, the airplane struck the slope of Mt Baco located in the occidental Mindoro province. The wreckage was found a week later, on the east slope of the mountain, at an altitude of 1,829 meters. All 33 occupants were killed in the crash. At the time of the accident, the airplane was off course by 51 km and weather conditions were poor with thunderstorm activity.

Shortly after take off, an engine caught fire and exploded. The seaplane lost height and crashed on the reef off San Jose, in the Mangarin Bay. Quickly on the scene, crew from the USS Half Moon Bay and USS San Pablo were able to evacuated eight injured crew while two others were killed. The aircraft was registered 45266 (VPB-28).