What happened
During a scheduled maritime patrol mission over the South China Sea, the crew of a seaplane reported that the left engine had ignited. Following the onset of the fire, the flight crew notified ground controllers of the emergency and initiated an immediate return to land.
While attempting to reach safety, the aircraft went down in the ocean approximately 150 km west of Laoag, Philippines. The incident resulted in ten fatalities among the occupants. Following the crash, a USCG Catalina crew successfully located and rescued the remaining five crew members from the water.
Findings
Investigations into the accident determined that the primary factor was an engine fire involving the left engine while the aircraft was in flight.