A Colombian Air Force plane carrying 128 people crashed shortly after takeoff on Monday, killing 66 and injuring dozens, according to officials. The Lockheed Martin Hercules C-130 went down in the southern Amazon region near the Peruvian border.
The aircraft was transporting 11 air force members, 115 army personnel, and two national police officers, said General Hugo Alejandro Lopez, head of the armed forces. Defence Minister Pedro Sanchez reported the crash occurred during takeoff from Puerto Leguizamo.
Rescuers shuttled survivors to hospitals, with 57 hospitalised, 30 in non-serious condition. Four people remain missing. Firefighter Eduardo San Juan Callejas told Caracol that the plane appeared to suffer an impact near the runway's end, with a wing clipping a tree before crashing and catching fire.
President Gustavo Petro criticised bureaucratic delays in modernising the military, stating, 'I will grant no further delays; it is the lives of our young people that are at stake.' Several presidential candidates offered condolences and called for an investigation.
The crash site, 3km from an urban centre, was difficult to reach, impeding rescue efforts. Lockheed Martin pledged support for the investigation. Colombia acquired its first C-130s in the late 1960s and has modernised some with US surplus equipment.
