Lili Marlene (aircraft)

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The Lili Marlene
Lili-marlene.jpg
The Lili Marlene, pictured in 1946, upon delivery in the Philippines.

The Lili Marline, also known as the Lily Marline, was a Douglas C-47 Skytrain that crashed at Mount Makaturing, near Dansalan, Lanao. [1] All 17 people on board were killed. Among those on board, were high-ranking Philippine Government Officials, including Colonel Edwin Andrews, Chief of Staff of the Philippine Army Air Corps (PAAC, later Philippine Air Force) and the Board of Directors of the National Land Settlement Administration (NSLA) (now known as the Department of Agrarian Reform), including the Chairman of the NSLA and President of the Philippine Sugar Association, [2] Rafael R. Alunan. This was the first recorded air accident of the Philippine Air Force.

Contents

Aircraft

The Douglas C-47 Skytrain Lili Marlene was delivered to the Philippines as a result of the Treaty of Manila, [3] and on the day of Philippine Independence, the Lili Marlene was delivered to the Philippines, in Manila. The equipment the United States gave to the Philippines was "Sorely needed" [1] as the Philippine Government, at the time was attempting to suppress communist movements in the Philippines.

Incident

On May 18, 1947, the C-47 was scheduled to fly a route from South Cotabato (Buayan Air Base) to Bacolod via Dansalan, with Rafael R. Alunan (NLSA), Francisco Zulueta (NSLA), Alfredo Paredes (NSLA) and 5 other NSLA staff, Colonel Edwin Andrews and Officers and Soldiers of the Philippine Army Air Corps. [4]

However, mid-way through the first leg of the trip, the plane had been guided into the direct flight path of Mount Makaturing in Lanao, near Dansalan, [5] at around 5300 feet. However, no one noticed that the plane had crashed until 96 hours after the plane's expected time of arrival in Bacolod. [6]

On May 22, 1947, the public was informed that the C-47 failed to arrive at Bacolod after 96 hours, President Manuel Roxas hosted a search party in an attempt to recover the plane and fate of the people on board, headed by Major General Rafael Jalandoni. The Search Party was tasked with carrying out maritime and aerial reconnaissance over Visayas and Mindanao in an attempt to recover the plane.

On the same day of the search, a plane wreckage emerged on a mountain in Bukidnon. [7] In which the search party concluded that no one survived the accident. However, it was later then confirmed that this was not the case, as the plane was a C-47, but not the Lili Marlene [8]

As a result, another search party was sent out to find the Lili Marlene. This included both maritime and air searches.

On May 26, 1947, a plane was suspected to be found, now on Mount Makaturing, which was investigated by the search party. [9]

On May 29, 1947, it was confirmed that the plane was the Lili Marlene, and 17 bodies were recovered, including Rafael R. Alunan and Colonel Edwin Andrews, which thus ended the search, and began the process of Investigation. [10]

Investigation

An Article showing the last moments of the Plane towards its crash, and an Aerial Photo of the wreckage of the plane. Lili Marlene (Wreckage).jpg
An Article showing the last moments of the Plane towards its crash, and an Aerial Photo of the wreckage of the plane.

On the evening of May 29, 1947, a statement by Major General Rafael Jalandoni to Malacañang concluded that the aircraft underwent a controlled flight into terrain

However, there were also some suspicions that there may have been more passengers loaded than the original 17, in which Jalandoni explains that "Some of the passengers may have been disintegrated" as well as the grounds that there were "women's clothing and other articles among the debris." He also states that "Not a body was found whole." He also stated that "Some of the Passengers may have Disintegrated in the Intense Heat", which led to an overall conclusion that the plane was overweight, therefore the plane may have been controlled into terrain, with it being impossible to pull up or avoid the mountain. [12]

However, a week later on June 5, 1947, members of the Macaso Party near Mount Makaturing found body parts and parts of a plane on the slopes of Mount Seriban. This then raised speculation on whether the plane had "exploded in mid-air due to undetermined causes". [13]

Aftermath

After the search, the remains of those on board the Lili Marlene were transported back to Manila on May 31, 1947. This then led to the State Funeral, held by President Manuel Roxas, [14] honouring the men aboard the Lili Marlene, such as the men apart of the Alunan Party (NSLA) (Including Rafael R. Alunan), the Chief of Staff of the PAAC, Colonel Edwin Andrews and Judge Francisco Zulueta.

On December 6, 1956, The Philippine Government retained control on an airbase in Zamboanga, in which they named the Airbase after Colonel Edwin Andrews. Today, Edwin Andrews Air base is still in service, with it being partially joined with Zamboanga International Airport.

Rafael R. Alunan was the grandfather of Rafael Alunan III, [15] who grew up to become the Secretary of Tourism under the Administration of Former President Corazon Aquino.

Francisco Zulueta's Brother, Jose Zulueta later became a Senator of the Philippines in 1953 [16] and the Governor of Iloilo.

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References

  1. 1 2 "The Lili Marlene". Filipinas Heritage Library.
  2. ↑ "ALUNAN RETURNS - the Tribune (Philippines : 1932–1945) - 20 Aug 1935". Tribune. 20 August 1935.
  3. ↑ "July 4, 1946: The Philippines Gained Independence from the United States". 2 July 2021.
  4. ↑ "Alunan, F. Zulueta and 14 others lost in Air Crash". The Times (Philippines) . 1947-05-22. pp. 1–3.
  5. ↑ "Over 17 May Have Died; Search Ends". The Evening News (Philippines). 1947-05-29. pp. 13–16.
  6. ↑ "Plane Missing with Alunan Party". The Manila Chronicle . Manila, Philippines. 1947-05-22. pp. 1–4.
  7. ↑ "Plane Wreck Found on Bukidnon Mount; No Sign of Life Seen". The Evening News (Philippines) . Manila, Philippines. 1947-05-22. pp. 15–16.
  8. ↑ "Jalandoni Finds Wrecked Plane is not Alunan's". The Evening News (Philippines) . 1947-05-23. pp. 1–3.
  9. ↑ "Alunan Plane Wreck Found". The Manila Bulletin . 1947-05-26. pp. 20–23.
  10. ↑ "Alunan Plane Found; Rescue Work Starts". The Manila Times . 1947-05-26. pp. 1–4.
  11. ↑ "Plan State Funeral/Exclusive Photos of Plane Crash". The Manila Chronicle . 1947-05-26. p. 6.
  12. ↑ "Over 17 May Have Died; Search Ends". The Evening News (Philippines) . 1947-05-29. pp. 13–15.
  13. ↑ "MPs Locate 3 More "Lili" Wreck Bodies". The Evening News (Philippines) . 1947-06-05. pp. 1–16.
  14. ↑ "President Roxas Views Remains of "Lily" Victims On Arrival". The Manila Chronicle . 1947-05-30. pp. 9–13.
  15. ↑ "He was there: EDSA 1986 recounted". 24 February 2024.
  16. ↑ "Senators Profile - Jose C. Zulueta". Senate of the Philippines.
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