MANILA — Authorities have dispatched a search and rescue team to Mount Kalatungan in Bukidnon, which is considered a possible crash site of the missing FA-50 lead-in trainer fighter aircraft of the Philippine Air Force.

 Lieutenant General Luis Rex Bergante, commander of Armed Forces of the Philippines Eastern Mindanao Command, confirmed that the deployment was based on available assessments pointing to the area as the probable crash site.

“Baka doon ‘yung probable site, crash site… based sa mga assessment,” Bergante said in a phone interview on Tuesday evening.

The FA-50 aircraft went missing during a tactical night operation after midnight on Tuesday.

According to PAF spokesperson Col. Ma. Consuelo Castillo, the aircraft was providing support to ground troops when it lost communication with the rest of the aircraft involved in the mission just minutes before reaching the target area.

Two pilots were aboard the missing FA-50 aircraft.

“The other aircraft repeatedly attempted to re-establish contact with the missing aircraft until their return to [the Mactan-Benito Ebuen Air Base in] Cebu,” Castillo told reporters in a press briefing at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City.

The official did not disclose the target area, but the 4th Infantry Division of the Philippine Army confirmed that troops conducted an operation against members of the New People’s Army (NPA) at Barangay Iba in Cabanglasan, Bukidnon, where they also requested close air support from air assets.

“The NCMRC (North Central Mindanao Regional Committee), that’s the one na ang leader ay napatay last two o three weeks ago… Marami-rami [members] ang nakita sa area, that’s why immediately ang 403rd IB nagconduct ng operation,” Major Francisco Garello Jr., spokesperson of the 4ID, said in a phone interview with reporters.

“Yes, correct po. Our forces requested the close air support from our air assets to preserve our forces and to avoid casualties na critical sa ating pagneutralize sa CTG (communist terrorist group),” he added.

The PAF has since conducted extensive search operations, utilizing its helicopters and all available resources, to locate the missing aircraft.

In a text message sent to reporters on Tuesday evening, Castillo said ground rescuers are tracking the location of the pilots based on signals emitted by their personal locator beacons, fueling hope of their survival.

The PAF has a fleet of 12 FA-50 light combat aircraft acquired under the administration of the late president Benigno Aquino III.

The incident is the most serious one involving the South Korean-built aircraft so far.

No declaration has been made yet as to the grounding of all PAF FA-50 aircraft.

READ: Philippine fighter jet goes missing during mission against rebels