Bogota (TDI): A Colombian military C-130 Hercules aircraft carrying 125 soldiers and crew crashed shortly after take-off from Puerto Leguizamo early Monday, killing at least 66 people and injuring dozens more, officials reported.
Authorities said 58 soldiers, six air force personnel, and two police officers died in the accident. The plane was en route to an Amazon outpost near the southern border with Ecuador and Peru. Investigators are probing the cause of the crash.
The region has recently seen heightened military operations targeting drug cartels and militias. Local residents reported hearing a loud explosion as the plane struggled to gain altitude before crashing into the jungle. Images from the scene showed burning wreckage and debris scattered across the forest floor.
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Colombian President Gustavo Petro called the incident a “horrific accident” and stressed the need to modernize the country’s military hardware. Defense Minister Pedro Sanchez expressed deep sorrow, noting it was too early to determine the crash’s cause.
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This is the second South American C-130 Hercules crash in less than a month; a Bolivian military cargo plane went down on February 27, killing at least 24 people. The C-130 is widely used for its ability to operate from remote airstrips.
