CAMP EVANGELISTA, Cagayan de Oro City, (PNA) — The military on Saturday denied reports that communist guerrillas shot down one of its helicopter gunships in Misamis Oriental last Friday.
Capt. Christian Uy, spokesperson of the army’s 4th Infantry Division, said that the Huey helicopter gunships made an emergency landing in Balingasag Friday morning when the pilot noticed a mechanical malfunction while airborne back to the base in Cagayan de Oro City.
He said that the pilot and the helicopter mechanic successfully fixed the problem prompting the helicopter to fly back safely to the army base in Camp Evangelista on Friday afternoon.
According to Uy, two Huey helicopters flew to the borders of Balingasag and Lagonglong in Misamis Oriental to deliver supplies for the troops and additional reinforcement when one of the helicopter gunship experienced mechanical trouble on their way back to Cagayan de Oro City.
Unconfirmed stories of a helicopter crash after being shot by communist New People’s Army guerrillas in Misamis Oriental broke Friday afternoon.
Uy said the military has sent additional troops and supplies to the embattled borders of Lagonglong and Balingasag where a running gun battle between NPA rebels and government troopers rages since Monday.
He said that the army troopers were in hot pursuit of communist guerrillas who attacked an army outpost in Lantad, a former rebel stronghold in the mountains of Balingasag two weeks ago when waylaid by NPA rebels in the hinterlands of Lagonglong, a neighboring town of Balingasag.
Uy said that the fighting has stopped since Friday but the government troopers composed of battle-scarred scout rangers had mounted a relentless pursuit operations in the area.
He said the military has utilized helicopter gunships in sending relief, rescue, retrieval, and reinforcement to the ground troops since the sporadic firefight erupted last Monday.