At least 66 people were killed and dozens injured after a Colombian Air Force C-130 Hercules aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff near Puerto Leguízamo in southern Colombia, officials said.
Air force commander Carlos Fernando Silva Rueda said the plane was carrying 114 army personnel along with 11 crew members. The US-made Lockheed Martin transport aircraft went down in a rural area of Putumayo province, near the Peru border.
Colombian Defence Minister Pedro Sánchez confirmed the aircraft suffered “a tragic accident while taking off” as it transported security forces, calling the incident “deeply sad for the country.”
A military source told AFP that the dead included 58 soldiers, six air force personnel and two police officers, while other sources cited by Reuters also put the death toll at 66.
Sánchez later said ammunition onboard detonated following a fire on the aircraft, worsening the impact of the crash. The cause of the accident is under investigation.
Emergency responders were deployed to the crash site and were seen searching through wreckage for survivors. Images from local media showed thick smoke rising from the site, while trucks carrying soldiers rushed to the area.
Footage on local news platforms also appeared to show residents transporting injured soldiers to hospitals on motorbikes.
President Gustavo Petro described the crash as a “horrendous accident” that “should not have happened,” and blamed bureaucratic delays for hindering efforts to modernise military aircraft and equipment.
“I will allow no further delays, the lives of our young people are at stake,” he wrote on X, without specifying the exact cause of the crash.
The incident is among the deadliest air accidents in recent history involving Colombia’s Air Force.
Last month, a Bolivian Air Force C-130 Hercules carrying banknotes crashed in western Bolivia, killing at least 20 people. (Agencies)
