President Arroyo yesterday paid tribute to the late Air Force Capt. Aniano Amatong for his "great courage" and heroism when he crashed to his death to save the lives of others.
The President personally conveyed her condolences to the family of Amatong at his wake at the Villamor Air Base in Pasay City, shortly after her urban poor visit in Tondo, Manila.
"The President and the Commander-in-Chief salutes the great courage of Capt. Aniano Amatong. He clearly showed not only to our fighting men and women, but also to the entire nation what the word heroism really means," Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said in a statement.
"We extend our deepest sympathy to his family and we assure his kin and fellow soldiers that this sacrifice will forever be enshrined in the roll of honor of the Armed Forces," Bunye added.
Amatong and his co-pilot, Capt. James Actosta, were flying an OV-10 plane to Clark Field, Pampanga for military exercises with US troops when the plane’s engine broke down.
Instead of parachuting to safety, Amatong steered away the troubled plane from a residential area and crashed into a fishpond in Paombong, Bulacan. (Genalyn D. Kabiling)
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