Helicopter crash kills 2 in Philippines; Malaysian among casualties
The helicopter was carrying five people when it went down in a grassy area of a residential district in Pililla, a small town in Rizal province.
This handout photo taken and received on Mar 3, 2026 courtesy of the Facebook page of Mayor John Masinsin shows the wreckage of a helicopter after it crashed in Pililla, Rizal province. (Photo: AFP/Handout via Mayor John Masinsin)
MANILA: A Malaysian national and a Filipino were killed on Tuesday (Mar 3) when a helicopter crashed in a vacant lot about two hours southeast of Manila.
The helicopter was carrying five people, including two Malaysians, when it went down in a grassy area of a residential district in Pililla, a small town in Rizal province, at around 7.27am local time, officials said.
Rizal provincial police officer Ramjae Pangga told AFP that two passengers, a Malaysian and a Filipino, were killed in the crash.
The pilot, meanwhile, had been critically injured, said Pililla town mayor John Masinsin.
"The three survivors are ... still in shock, especially the pilot," he told AFP.
"They are now en route to a tertiary hospital in (Metro Manila), upon the request of their families," he said, praising the pilot for managing to put the aircraft down in the residential area without hurting anyone.
Pangga added the emergency landing had been forced "because their engine was about to shut down".
An investigation by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines is underway.
