The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) has concluded the retrieval operation on the crashed C-130 cargo plane of the Philippine Air Force (PAF) in Patikul, Sulu on Sunday night, July 4, which left 50 individuals dead and 53 others injured, making it one of the worst aviation accidents in the history of the military.
The Department of National Defense (DND) announced Monday, July 5, that all 96 soldiers aboard the C-130 cargo plane with tail number 5125 were accounted for as the retrieval operation was completed around 11 p.m. Sunday.
The bodies of 47 military personnel who perished in the accident were found while 49 others were hospitalized due to various injuries.
Three civilians also died after they were crushed by the wreckage of the plane while four residents were injured in the accident.
"All passengers, pilots and crew were retrieved. Meanwhile, the search for the black box of the crashed C130 is still ongoing," the DND said in a statement.
The crash site in Barangay Bangkal, Patikul was also secured by personnel from the 45th Infantry Battallion (45IB) and Tactical Operations Group (TOG)-11 to preserve the pieces of evidence that will be used in the on-going investigation to determine the cause of the crash.
Initial investigation showed that the cargo plane was approaching fast as it attempted to land at the short Jolo runway when it missed and crashed around 11:30 a.m. Sunday.
The plane was carrying troops from the 4th Infantry Division, most of them were fresh Philippine Army privates who were on their first deployment to help combat terrorism and communist insurgency in Sulu, the stronghold of the Islamic State (IS)-linked Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG).
Prior to the accident, the military plane took off from Villamor Air Base in Pasay City and refuelled at Lumbia Airport in Cagayan de Oro City, before flying to Jolo airport where the accident occured.
The crashed C-130 was one of the two cargo planes acquired by the AFP through a grant from the United States government. The acquisition of the two C-130s was worth P2.5 billion, with the Philippine government paying for P1.6 billion while the US government contributed P900 million.
The crashed plane was delivered last January 29 and was formally welcomed to the PAF fleet on February 18.
The C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military aircraft designed by Lockheed Martin, an American aerospace manufacturer, and is designed as a troop, medival evacuation, and cargo transport aircraft.