Monday, April 30, 2007 (Philippines)

POWER MANEUVER. Linemen from the Mactan Electric Company work to restore the power lines that snapped after a UH-1H Huey military helicopter crashed in a busy street in Lapu-Lapu City late Saturday afternoon, killing nine persons. (Sun.Star Photo/Allan Cuizon) PHILIPPINE Air Force (PAF) members investigating the crash of a UH-1H Huey helicopter are trying to find out if three kites that got tangled in its swash plate could have caused the accident. Major Gen. Pedro Ike Insierto, commanding general of the Tactical Operations Center of the PAF, said they found strands of nylon used in flying big kites. The strands were around the swash plates of the helicopter. Swash plates, he said, control the pitch of the main motor. Blades on a helicopter are pitched to control the direction of the chopper’s movement. Pinoy Votes: Sun.Star Election 2007 [full story]