[3] The aircraft involved in the accident was a McDonnell Douglas DC-9 (registration number RP-C1507) and was delivered to Air Canada in September 1967 before acquired by Cebu Pacific in March 1997.

The plane made a stopover at Tacloban at 02:20 GMT, though sources differ about whether it was a scheduled or unscheduled stop.

Colonel Jacinto Ligot was the chief of the Philippine Air Force rescue team, which faced difficulties due to the deep ravines and dense vegetation on the slopes of the mountain.

"[4] Jesus Dureza, the crisis manager during the rescue and retrieval operations, said he found out the Air Transportation Office maps used by the pilots listed the elevation of Mt.

This error might have misled the pilots to believe that they were clear of terrain, while in fact they were flying dangerously low.