Updated March 24, 2026
A Colombian military transport aircraft carrying mostly soldiers crashed Monday near Puerto Leguízamo, leaving at least 66 people dead and dozens injured, authorities said. The air force said the victims included six members of the air force, 58 soldiers from the National Army and two National Police officers.
Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez said the Hercules C-130 went down shortly after takeoff. The air force reported the plane was carrying 128 people, including crew. One member of the military was uninjured; 57 personnel were rescued and evacuated from the scene, and four soldiers were still unaccounted for.
Officials said there was no information suggesting the wreckage resulted from an attack by an illegal armed group. Rescue teams were dispatched to the site and investigators have opened an inquiry to determine the cause of the crash.
Puerto Leguízamo Deputy Mayor Carlos Claros said in a social media video that victims’ bodies were taken to the town morgue and that the municipality’s two health clinics treated the injured before they were flown to larger hospitals. Puerto Leguízamo is in Putumayo province in Colombia’s Amazon region, near the borders with Ecuador and Peru.
Local media images showed a field shrouded in thick black smoke and soldiers hurrying at the scene. President Gustavo Petro posted video of troops and civilians working to put out fires after the crash and used the incident to renew calls for modernization of military aircraft and equipment, saying bureaucratic obstacles have hampered those efforts and that officials should be held accountable when they fail.
Defense Minister Sánchez described the event as a tragic accident and reiterated there were no signs of a rebel attack as investigators continue their work.
Reporters on the scene and official statements contributed to this account. José Díaz contributed to this report.