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Colombian military plane crashes after takeoff with more than 120 people on board

Putumayo Governor Jhon Gabriel Molina specified that the passengers included 112 military personnel and two police officers, and gave a provisional toll of at least eight dead and 83 injured

A Colombian Air Force C-130 Hercules crashed on Monday shortly after taking off from La Tagua airstrip in Puerto Leguízamo, Putumayo, in southern Colombia, with at least 125 people on board. The aircraft was heading to Puerto Asís, also in Putumayo, carrying troops on a routine rotation.

General Carlos Fernando Silva Rueda, commander of the Colombian Aerospace Force, said the plane was carrying 11 crew members and 114 passengers, mostly army soldiers. Putumayo Governor Jhon Gabriel Molina specified that the passengers included 112 military personnel and two police officers, and gave a provisional toll of at least eight dead and 83 injured. However, Carlos Claros, the government secretary of Puerto Leguízamo, later told Colombian media that the municipal morgue had received 33 bodies, suggesting a significantly higher death toll. Figures were still being revised at the time of publication.

The accident occurred at 9:50 a.m. local time when the aircraft lost altitude seconds after takeoff and crashed in a rural area roughly two kilometres from the airport. Video geolocated by CNN shows the plane beginning its ascent before rapidly descending and disappearing into the vegetation. Footage recorded by local residents shows a large fire and a dense column of black smoke.

Así ocurrió el accidente del avión Hércules de la @FuerzaAereaCol que transportaba cerca de 120 militares. Había acabado de despegar del aeropuerto en Puerto Leguízamo, Putumayo, y claramente se ve que la aeronave no pudo ganar la altitud necesaria.

La investigación determinara… pic.twitter.com/fj4RY7a1rv

— SARGENTO DEL EJÉRCITO NACIONAL DE COLOMBIA (@SARGENTOCHALA) March 23, 2026

Defence Minister Pedro Sánchez, a retired general, said the crash occurred after takeoff and ruled out an attack by illegal armed groups, despite their presence in the area. “The aircraft was in airworthy condition and the crew was duly qualified,” he said. Sánchez explained that ammunition carried by the soldiers detonated due to the post-impact fire, accounting for the explosions heard in recordings shared on social media.

Residents of Puerto Leguízamo mobilised to transport surviving soldiers on motorcycles and private vehicles to the local hospital. The armed forces deployed a medicalised C-130 with capacity for 50 stretchers, a C-295 with 24 stretchers, a medicalised UH-60 helicopter and a King Air air ambulance. The first wounded began arriving at Bogotá's Military Hospital during the afternoon. Major General Royer Gómez Herrera, army commander, travelled to Putumayo to coordinate the response.

President Gustavo Petro described the crash as a “horrific accident that should never have happened” and linked it to the failure to modernise the military fleet. Petro said he has demanded the aircraft be updated but the required planning document (CONPES) has not been approved. “If civilian or military administrative officials are not up to this challenge, they must be removed,” he said.

Colombia's Civil Aviation Authority made its Technical Accident Investigation Directorate available to assist with the inquiry. Puerto Leguízamo is located near the tri-border area with Ecuador and Peru, in a remote Amazon region.CompartirContenido del proyectoMercoPressCreado por tiAgrega PDF, documentos u otro texto para consultar en este proyecto.