Bato mourns pilot’s death after chopper that serviced him crashed
Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa is mourning the death of the pilot of the helicopter that crashed in Guimba, Nueva Ecija province, just hours after it brought him to Baguio City on Saturday.
“I’m heartbroken. I know her. She had a very bright future,” Dela Rosa said of Julia Flori Po, the 25-year-old captain of the ill-fated chopper registered to Lionair Inc. “It really breaks my heart. I could not imagine how I would feel if it happened to my own daughter. It’s really difficult to accept what happened to her,” he told reporters somberly.
Family friend
He said the accident was particularly painful for him as he was close to the victim’s father, businessman and Lionair owner Archibald Po.
In 2011, the elder Po was summoned to a Senate inquiry into the sale of two refurbished helicopters allegedly owned by then First Gentleman Mike Arroyo, which the Philippine National Police had purchased as brand-new units.
Dela Rosa confirmed the Robinson R44 light helicopter, with tail number RP-C3424, picked him up in Imus, Cavite, on Saturday morning and dropped him off in Baguio before he proceeded to an event in Binmaley, Pangasinan.
He said the chopper was already returning to Manila after stopping in Binalonan, Pangasinan, to refuel. He recalled they didn’t experience any trouble when they departed for Baguio.
Smooth flight
“We had a very smooth flight and we were happy during the flight. We did not notice anything unusual… The weather was very good (on that day),” he added.
Dela Rosa, who traveled with two of his staff members, said he initially received a text message informing him that the helicopter he had boarded was already missing.
He was later told that Po was killed when the chopper crashed in a swamp in Guimba town.
“She was a very good and experienced pilot. Her father told me that she had logged plenty of flying hours,” he said, adding he had previously used the same chopper.
The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines said Po had difficulty starting the helicopter’s engine before it took off at 4:30 p.m., about 30 minutes before it crashed.
