Philippines crash toll reaches 18

Investigators believe engine failure caused the crash

Rescuers have recovered four more bodies from the wreckage of a Philippine plane that crashed into Manila Bay, raising the death toll to 18.

Divers found the bodies of three men trapped inside a portion of the plane that remained underwater, said coastguard commander Reuben Lista.

Another male body was found floating about 50 metres (55 yards) away.

Several survivors were pulled from the water

Sixteen people survived Monday's crash, which happened shortly after take-off.

Early reports suggest engine trouble caused the 44-seat Fokker 27 to crash. Amateur video showed the right propeller was not turning as the aircraft went down.

The flight had been heading for the northern city of Laoag when the air crew reported engine trouble. The plane tried to return to the airport but crashed into the sea just one kilometre (0.62 miles) short of the runway.

The pilot and co-pilot survived the crash, and would be able to help shed light on what happened, said air transportation chief Adelberto Yap.

Foreign casualties

Seven Australians and three Britons were aboard the flight. So far only two Australians have been found alive, while one Australian and two Britons were confirmed dead.

Steve Thompson, 25, of Sydney, survived the crash with minor injuries. He was travelling with five friends for a surfing holiday.

Mr Thompson said he saw smoke coming from the left side of the plane just before the pilot came on the intercom to tell passengers to brace for impact.

Asked if the passengers panicked, Mr Thompson said: "The cabin instantly filled with water, so no one made any noise".

The second Australian confirmed alive is a resident of Manila.

British nationals Julia Nguyen and Thuan Nguyen were confirmed dead, said a British embassy spokeswoman. Their son, Minh Nguyen, was believed to be among the bodies recovered on Tuesday, said coastguard officials.

LaogAir's four other Fokker planes had been grounded pending further investigations.

This was the second crash of a Fokker aircraft in less than a week.

Twenty of the 22 passengers and crew died at Luxembourg's international airport on 6 November when a twin-engine Fokker 50 smashed into a field in thick fog.

The last major plane crash in the Philippines was in April 2000, when an Air Philippine Boeing 737 crashed near the southern city of Davao.

All 131 people onboard were killed.