According to Defense Minister Delfin Lorenzana, a Philippine military plane carrying over 92 people crashed in the southern Philippines on July 4, 2021. Three pilots and five other crew members were also on board, according to the Defence Minister.
According to the Philippine military chief, at least 40 people have been recovered so far. After missing the runway, the Lockheed C-130 aircraft had a landing tragedy. “Rescue attempts are ongoing,” the Philippine Air Force said in a statement.
Those rescued on Sunday were pulled from the wreckage in Sulu province, according to Chief of Staff Gen. Cirilito Sobejana.
In a message, Cirilito Sobejana said the plane had crashed a few kilometers (miles) from Jolo airport at 11:30 a.m. (0330 GMT) carrying troops. “Right now, we’re looking after the survivors who were brought to the 11th Infantry Division station hospital in Busbus, Jolo, Sulu,” he said.
The plane went down in an area where the military has been fighting Islamist militants for a long time. The remaining passengers on the plane are being rescued through a rescue operation.
The jet crash is not expected to be caused by an attack Army spokesman Colonel Edgard Arevalo said the focus now was on rescuing survivors instead of investigating the cause.
During World War II, Jolo Airport was built in the 1940s for American fighter planes. The airport was then owned by the US military at the end of the war. It is the province of Sulu’s only airport.
