SANTO DOMINGO.- It was a giant C-5 Galaxy and another United States Air Force airplane with humanitarian aid for Haina, which panicked Santo Domingo East’s inhabitants when they flew over the area for more than 20 minutes before landing at San Isidro Airbase.

In a statement, the U.S. embassy said the C-5 cargo plane brought an ambulance to be donated to Haina, as well as eight tons of medical equipment, school supplies and home utensils, to be distributed by the NGO "Sisters of Charity," which together with the Boston Red Sox Foundation, obtained the C-5 on loan by the USAF.

U.S. Navy officer Ricardo Arias received the C-5’s crew, who in their low-altitude flight over Santo Domingo East prompted drivers and passengers to stop their vehicles and ask if it was a passenger plane with mechanical problems.

TV and radio programs were buzzing with calls from people who saw the military plane, which made it necessary for Dominican Air Force chief Pedro Rafael Peña, clarify that the crew had to circle for several minutes waiting for landing clearance. "There was no problem, what happens is that both airplanes couldn’t land at the same time, the first one landed and the other did so minutes later."

Peña said one of the planes came to the country to bring equipment and an ambulance for the U.S. embassy and the other to return three helicopters from San Isidro.

The Air Force chief said the USAF planes left the country yesterday after unloading the equipment and loading the helicopters.