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Catastrophe

Eight dead in military plane crash in Colombia

May 2, 2017

The single-engine aircraft appears to have crashed into a communications tower. However, an investigation is looking into the precise cause of the fatal flight.

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Cessna 208 Caravan
Image: Getty Images/AFP/L. Suwanrumpha

All passengers traveling aboard the Cessna Caravan 208 died on Monday in Colombia when their aircraft appeared to have collided with a telecommunications antenna.

According to the first report from the National Army, the victims included two pilots, one crewmember, two military passengers and three civilians. There were no survivors.

The crash occurred about 4:30 p.m. local time (2130 UTC) in the municipal jurisdiction of Facatativa, some 39 kilometers (24 miles) northeast of the Colombia capital Bogota. The plane was flying between the departments of Tolima, where the country's principal military base is located, and Cundinamarca when the accident took place. 

Karte Flugzeugabsturz Kolumbien ENG

President Juan Manuel Santos tweeted his condolences to the victims' families, writing, "Our solidarity is with the relatives of the victims of the airplane accident of the Cundinamarca military. Eight individuals lost their lives."

Cause unknown

An accident investigative commission from the aerial division of the army is looking into the root cause of the crash, which currently remains unknown.

The mayor of Facatativa, Pablo Malo, confirmed the ongoing investigation and described the area where the plan went down as an open field "but with a wooded slope."

cmb/se (dpa, EFE)