In brief
Colombia faces a national tragedy as a Hercules C-130 military transport plane crash leads to the deaths of 66 military personnel. While search operations persist for four missing soldiers, local communities and authorities are sharing their sorrow and trying to uncover the factors leading to this incident. The Colombian President has emphasized the need for modernization in military equipment, aiming to prevent such calamities in the future.
Rescue workers in Colombia are searching for four people who are missing after a military plane crashed in the south of the country. Sixty-six members of the Colombian security forces were killed on Monday when the Hercules C-130 transport plane came down shortly after take-off near Colombia's border with Peru.
Locals were first to the scene, pulling out dozens of injured survivors from the burning wreckage and ferrying them to hospitals on the back of their motorbikes. An investigation is under way to determine the cause of the accident.
A total of 128 people were on board the transport plane, which was headed from the town of Puerto Leguízamo to Puerto Asís. Colombian President Gustavo Petro has hinted at the role of outdated military hardware in the incident, stating, This piece of scrap metal was bought in 2020 and came down, let's ask why. He also alluded to bureaucratic issues delaying efforts to modernize the armed forces.
Mobile phone footage captured the plane losing height shortly after take-off, followed by smoke rising from the crash site. According to Colombia's defense minister, explosions heard were from ammunition onboard igniting in the flames. Fortunately, there were no indications that the plane had been attacked by armed groups active in the region.
Eyewitness accounts describe a loud bang preceding the crash, further amplifying the mystery surrounding the incident. The death toll includes 58 army personnel, six air force members, and two police officers, making this one of the deadliest aviation incidents in recent Colombian history.
