Malacañang announced on Wednesday night that no one survived the ill-fated presidential Bell 412 chopper.

Deputy presidential spokesperson Lorelei Fajardo said in a text message that the helicopter, which crashed on Tuesday late afternoon, was found in Mt. Panatoan, north of Mt. Pulag.

“There are no survivors,” she announced.

The passengers of the crashed chopper were Press Undersecretary Jose Capadocia Jr, the president's appointments secretary Marilou Frostrom, director Perlita Bandayanon from the Presidential Management Staff, Senior Military Aide to the President Brig. Gen. Carlos Clet and his aide Petty Officer 1 Demy Reyno of the Presidential Security Group.

Major Rolando Sacatani was the pilot with Captain Alvin Alegata as co-pilot. Air Force crewman Staff Sergeant Romeo Gem Perez was also onboard.

“We mourn this great and profound loss. We laud them. They died in the line of duty, a testament of true public service, " Fajardo said. "Their service and patriotism will be remembered. We commiserate with their families and offer our deepest condolences.”

Former press secretary Ignacio Bunye said in a text message, "Jocap (Capadocia) was a newsman to the very end. Despite the heavy demands of his job, he seemed to relish his role as advance party for the president in her out-of-town engagements, making sure that coordination with accompanying media and local reporters was done properly."

Bunye said he was also close to appointments secretary Frostrom. "Who wouldn't be? She is very sociable and pleasant to work with. She is always cracking jokes."

The presidential aides were President Arroyo's advance team for her Wednesday visit. She was supposed to inspect the Bontoc-Banaue phase of the Halsema Highway rehabilitation.

Earlier, officials and the passengers' relatives were still hoping for survivors, as only 3 bodies were initially reported to have been found. Then Mayor Lopez Pugong of Tinoc town in Ifugao, in a phone interview Wednesday night, told ABS-CBN News that 7 bodies have been recovered from the crash site.

The retrieval team, however, declared that all 8 passengers did not make it. Ifugao governor Teddy Baguilat said, "We just don't want to keep people's hopes up." 

The town official said the bodies would be brought to the district hospital in Tinoc for identification.

The airforce said, if the weather improves on Thursday, they will airlift the passengers' remains to Villamor Airbase or to Loakan Airport in Baguio City.

Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita earlier said Mrs. Arroyo was not scheduled to board the Bell 412 since it was only a back-up aircraft.

Bad weather blamed

The Philippine Air Force (PAF) on Wednesday blamed bad weather for the accident, saying that sudden weather changes have been known to affect aircrafts in the mountain ranges.

"The area is known for having good weather now and then turning bad all of a sudden," Col. Raul Dimatatac, PAF Assistant Chief of Air Staff for Operations, said in a press conference.

He said aerial searches were called off Wednesday afternoon after inclement weather prevented five PAF aircraft from scouring the area. It was the Foot Patrol Team, which found the charred chopper and the bodies.

Dimatatac said both Sacatani and Alegata are capable pilots who have flown the Bell 412 chopper numerous times. He also ruled mechanical failure for the accident, saying that the aircraft received a certificate of airworthiness last February 10, 2009.

He said the PAF has six Bell 412 helicopters, which are used to service VIPs.

The Philippine government earlier asked the United States for air assistance in search and rescue operations for the presidential chopper that was reported missing since Tuesday afternoon.

National Disaster Coordinating Council Spokesman Anthony Golez said in an interview on ABS-CBN's On The Scene that several American aircraft including heavy lift helicopters have been dispatched to the boundaries of Ifugao and Nueva Vizcaya, where the chopper carrying several Malacañang staff was last sighted. With Reuters, ABS-CBN News