Vice President Manuel “Noli” De Castro on Wednesday said the bodies of eight Filipino fatalities in the helicopter crash in Afghanistan last July are scheduled to arrive in the country on Thursday and Friday.

According to De Castro, who is also the Presidential Adviser on overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), the bodies of the victims will be flown home after DNA testing on them have been completed just recently.
 
From Kuwait, De Castro said, the bodies will be flown to the country via Qatar Airways in two batches since planes of the airline have limited cargo space.  Included in the first batch to arrive on Thursday via Qatar Airways QR 646 are the bodies of Ely Israel Carino, Ernesto Chano De Vega, Ricardo Bullawit Vallejos Jr., and Noli Macalino Visda.
 
“It will be a great relief for the families of the victims that the bodies of their loved ones are finally coming home. We will assist the bereaved family so that they will receive the proper compensation for this misfortune," De Castro said.

De Castro lauded the efforts of all parties who helped facilitate the repatriation of the bodies. "I wish to thank the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the agency of the victims for working closely with us to have the bodies returned to the families," he said.

Last July, the helicopter had problems taking off at the Kandahar airfield. Minutes before take-off, which was bound for Spin Buldak, the helicopter suddenly burst into flames near the runway killing all its passengers. According to the AIM Group Incorporated, a US-based construction company, the 16 fatalities of the helicopter crash were composed of 10 Filipinos, four Nepalese and 2 Americans.

The bodies were later flown by US military authorities to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, USA on July 23 for proper identification through DNA testing.

Two of the Filipino fatalities were brought home earlier since their bodies were recognizable. They were Manolito Hornilla and Leopoldo Jimenez. However, the remaining eight were subjected to DNA testing for proper identification.