VOA reports that at least 45 people were killed, and 50 others were injured when a military plane crashed in the Philippines on Sunday (7/4/2021). The incident happened when the plane was supposed to transport the Philippine army to another place, which crashed after flying in the country’s south.

 

The C-130 Hercules aircraft of the Philippine Army is said to have had at least 100 people on board and was to transport newly graduated troops to the island of Julu in Solo Province. Gen. William Gonzalez, commander of the Solo Joint Forces, said most troops had camped in the air before the plane landed and caught fire. This is one of the deadliest air events in the history of Philippine Army aviation.

 

“This is a sad day, but we need to be hopeful. We call on the entire Philippine people to pray for the wounded, who have been rescued from this tragic and horrific incident,” said General Gonzalez. The search for the bodies of 17 other soldiers continues. At the same time, General Serilato, Subanji, chief of staff of the Philippine Army, said the military plane was originally intended to transport troops to the Kagjan Divara area of the island south of Minado. Still, the plan had to face a technical challenge to land on the island of Jolo. At the same time, local media reported that although the pilots tried to save the plane from crashing, they failed to do so.

 

Meanwhile, local officials in the Philippines say military officials have called on the Philippine government to declare a day of national mourning after the deadly incident. At the same time, the local media in the Philippines considered this event to be the fatal aviation event in the history of the country’s army. It was not immediately clear what caused the crash, but Philippine military officials said a technical problem might have caused the crash. Technical teams were dispatched to the scene to investigate.