Nestor Mata (January 16, 1926 – April 12, 2018) was a Filipino journalist whose writing career spanned six decades. He was also known as the only survivor of the 1957 plane crash that killed the President of the Philippines, Ramon Magsaysay, and 24 others. Education Nestor Mata graduated from the University of Santo Tomas where he obtained a degree in philosophy and letter. He has also had masteral studies on foreign affairs. Journalist career Early years Mata worked with a government radio station before becoming a reporter with the Philippine Herald newspaper and covered the Korean War as a war correspondent. He covered topics which involved politics and foreign affairs. In 1953, he was assigned by his newspaper to cover the then-newly elected President Magsaysay. Surviving the 1957 Cebu Douglas C-47 crash On March 16, 1957, President Magsaysay, accompanied by several government officials and journalists, flew to Cebu for a speaking engagement. Later that evening, the presidential party took off for the return flight to Manila. Their plane crashed in Mount Manung-gal in Cebu at around 1:16 a.m, March 17, 1957. Mata had been seated near the presidential compartment and was half-asleep at the time of the crash. He was initially rendered unconscious after the crash, and came to a few hours later. Mata later recounted: I found myself on the side of a steep cliff among dried bushes…. Agonizing with pain, I was completely at a loss what to do. About three meters away from me were parts of the plane. They were still burning. Meanwhile, I heard the distant howling of a dog. It was only then that I felt hopeful of being rescued. Thinking that there were probably people living not far away from where I lay moaning with pain, I made an effort to shout. I noticed that my voice echoed in the nearby mountains. After that, I began shouting, "Mr. President! Mr. President! Mr. President!" When no answer came, I shouted for Pablo Bautista, the reporter of the Liwayway magazine. "Pabling! Pabling!" Still no answer. It began to dawn on me that there was no other survivor except me. Mata was rescued by Marcelino Nuya and several other farmers residing near the crash site. He suffered second and third degree burns all over his body and would be hospitalized for the next six months. It took eighteen hours to transport the injured Mata down the