Philippine C-130H Hercules transport aircraft crashes with 92 passengers and crew

 

The actual C-130H involved, with tail number 5125, photographed in the US in 2020 before delivery to the PAF. Photo c/o SBGrad.



A Lockheed C-130H Hercules transport aircraft of the Philippine Air Force (PAF) crashed on 04 July 2021 in Sulu province south of the country.

The aircraft, with tail number 5125, crashed while trying to land at the province's Jolo Airport. The aircraft was carrying 3 pilots, 5 crew members, and 84 passengers mostly personnel from the Philippine Army's 4th Infantry Division.

According to an initial report from the Department of National Defense (DND), 40 people were rescued and have been brought to medical facilities, while 17 bodies have been recovered. Rescue and recovery operations are ongoing as of this writing.

Initial information available from Philippine defense pages indicated that the aircraft was flying from Lumbia Air Base in Cagayan de Oro City, and missed the runway while landing at Jolo Airport. It tried to regain power but failed and crashed just outside the airport.

The C-130H Hercules aircraft involved was only delivered to the PAF last January 2021, as part of an acquisition for 2 refurbished C-130 aircraft partially funded by US Military Assistance grant.

The aircraft was previously used by the US Air Force and entered service first in 1987. It was later on converted into an MC-130W Combat Spear special operations aircraft and served with the US Special Operations Command until 2016.

The aircraft was refurbished and removed of US military-only equipment, and was transferred to the Philippine Air Force in 2020, and delivered on January 2021. It entered service with the PAF on 18 February 2021.

With the crash, the PAF is expected to ground its entire fleet of C-130 Hercules aircraft, 2 of which are said to be currently operational. 2 other aircraft are undergoing maintenance, with one being serviced in Portugal.

The PAF's C-130 Hercules fleet are assigned with the 220th Airlift Wing's 222nd Airlift Squadron based in Benito Ebuen Air Base in Mactan, Cebu province.




[1] Philippines Department of National Defense
[2] Inquirer.net
[3] Philippine Defense Resource

Philippine C-130H Hercules transport aircraft crashes with 92 passengers and crew Philippine C-130H Hercules transport aircraft crashes with 92 passengers and crew Reviewed by Asia Pacific Defense Journal on July 04, 2021 Rating: 5

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