A Colombian military transport aircraft crashed during takeoff on Monday in a remote border region near Peru, killing 66 people and injuring dozens, officials said, marking one of the deadliest aviation incidents in the country in recent years.
The C-130 Hercules aircraft, manufactured by Lockheed Martin, was carrying 128 passengers, including army personnel, air force members, and police officers, according to Hugo Alejandro Lopez, head of Colombia’s armed forces.
Incident During Takeoff
The crash occurred as the aircraft was departing from Puerto Leguízamo, a town in southern Colombia close to the Peruvian border, Defense Minister Pedro Sanchez said on social media.
Emergency officials said the plane appeared to strike an object near the end of the runway before losing control. A wing clipped nearby trees moments later, causing the aircraft to crash and burst into flames. Explosive materials onboard detonated after impact, further complicating rescue efforts.
Rescue Operations
Local residents were the first to reach the site, assisting wounded survivors before military units arrived. Authorities said access to the crash zone was severely limited due to rugged terrain and poor infrastructure.
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Lopez said 57 survivors were hospitalized, with 30 reported in non-critical condition, while search teams continued to look for four missing passengers.
Political and Military Response
President Gustavo Petro said the tragedy highlights the urgent need to modernize Colombia’s military aircraft fleet, warning that administrative delays had put lives at risk.
Several political leaders and presidential candidates offered condolences and called for a full investigation into the crash.
Lockheed Martin said it would cooperate fully with Colombian authorities during the inquiry.
Aging Fleet Under Review
The C-130 Hercules has been in service since the 1950s and remains a backbone of Colombia’s military transport operations amid a decades-long internal conflict. Colombia first acquired the aircraft in the late 1960s and has since upgraded some units through U.S. defense cooperation programs.
Officials said the aircraft involved matched the tail number of one of three C-130s recently delivered by the United States.
The incident follows a similar crash earlier this year involving a Bolivian Air Force C-130 in El Alto, which killed more than 20 people, intensifying scrutiny over the continued use of aging military transport aircraft across the region.
