2012 Masbate Piper Seneca crash

Interior and Local Government Secretary Robredo and his aide, Police Chief Inspector June Paolo Abrazado, were in Cebu to attend the National Summit of the Community Investigative Support and the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group. Robredo originally booked an airline flight from Mactan–Cebu International Airport to Manila, but instead chartered an aircraft ==Accident==

The aircraft was a Piper PA-34-200 Seneca I, registered RP-C4431. In addition to Robredo and Abrazado there were two crew on board; the pilot who was also the CEO of Aviatour Air (the company that operated the aircraft); and the co-pilot, a Nepalese national. En route to Naga the crew of the Seneca requested an emergency landing at Masbate Airport, citing engine problems. some away from the island's airport. Of the four people aboard the aircraft, the sole survivor, Robredo's aide, said that the airplane broke apart as it hit the water. ==Search and recovery==

More than 200 rescuers together with Philippine military divers and helicopters started searching for the passengers after the crash. Additionally, the United States Navy sent the USNS Safeguard, a rescue and salvage ship that was undergoing repairs in a dry dock at Subic Bay, to help. Abrazado was then found about off the coast, along with the wreckage. On August 20, debris from the aircraft was recovered. President Benigno Aquino went to Masbate the day after the crash to personally receive updates on the situation. He was accompanied by Transport Secretary Mar Roxas, who said that special sonar equipment was also sent to aid in the search and that "we just want to do everything we can to save him [Robredo]." Aquino also said that Abrazado was conscious and had only a few injuries. On August 22, divers recovered a second body, later identified as that of the pilot, by raising the wreckage to a depth of . The copilot's body was retrieved by the crew of a passenger ferry the next day after it was seen floating near the crash site. ==Reactions==

The government called for a prayer vigil at a chapel in Manila. Paquito Ochoa, Jr. was named to Robredo's portfolio in an interim capacity. ==Investigation==

President Aquino revealed details of the accident investigation and its findings during a media briefing on November 13, 2012. The investigation found that improper maintenance led to the right engine suffering an internal failure, which likely would have caused misfiring and intermittent operation of the fuel pump. An airworthiness inspector of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines was suspended from duty as a result, pending the outcome of a separate investigation. Representatives of the pilot's family and Aviatour Air disputed the findings. ==See also==