Manila, Philippines – Fifty people were killed when a Philippine Air Force plane crashed in the southern Philippines on Sunday, the country's worst military air disaster in decades.
The
C-130 military plane was transporting troops from Cagayan de Oro, in Mindanao,
to Sulu province when it missed the runway on the island of Jolo, CNN affiliate
CNN Philippines reported, citing Armed Forces Chief Cirilito Sobejana.
Joint Task Force Sulu Commander William N Gonzales said the
personnel traveling on the plane "were supposed to report to their
battalions today. They were supposed to join us in our fight against terrorism."
The C-130 military plane was transporting troops to Sulu
province.
This
is the country's worst military air disaster in around 30 years, Reuters
reported. In 1993, a Philippine Air Force C-130 crashed, killing 30 people.
The
Lockheed Martin C-130 aircraft had recently arrived in the Philippines. It was one of two aircraft granted by the US government's military
financing program, according to a US government website announcement in February.
The
plane was considered to be in good condition. It had 11,000 flying hours left
before it was due for maintenance.
All
C-130s in the Philippines will now be grounded as part of the military's
standard operating procedure. However, the military only has one other C-130 in
the country -- the other two in the fleet are overseas for maintenance.
It
was one of a
number of new combat utility helicopters bought by the armed
forces in its bid to modernize its fleet, according to a Philippine government
website.
The
military personnel were supposed to bolster the battalions fighting
against Abu Sayyaf, a Filipino jihadi group based in Sulu that
has been involved in bomb attacks and piracy for decades. The group proclaimed
allegiance to ISIS in 2014.
Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2021/07/04/asia/philippines-air-force-plane-crash-intl-hnk/index.html
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