Dramatic footage circulating on X appears to show a Colombian military Hercules C-130 transport aircraft crashing shortly after takeoff from Puerto Leguízamo in southern Colombia. The cause of the crash remains unknown, and Colombian authorities have not yet released an official casualty count.
Local outlet Blu Radio reported that 110 Colombian soldiers were on board at the time of the C-130’s straight-out departure from the airport in the remote Amazon border region near Peru.
En un video aficionado quedó captado el momento exacto en el que un avión Hércules de la Fuerza Aeroespacial Colombiana (FAC) se precipitó a tierra solo instantes después de haber despegado del aeropuerto de Puerto Leguízamo, en el departamento del Putumayo. #VocesySonidos pic.twitter.com/HvbXwwR1cS
— BluRadio Colombia (@BluRadioCo) March 23, 2026
Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez said military units had already reached the crash site but noted that “the exact number of victims and the causes of the crash have not yet been determined.”
Sánchez’s translated X post:
Additional footage from the crash area has also surfaced on X.
Atención: Un avión Hércules de la @FuerzaAereaCol se accidentó saliendo de La Tagua, Putumayo. 110 soldados iban a bordo. Ya han sido rescatados 20 militares heridos. Situación en desarrollo. Vía @BluRadioCo pic.twitter.com/Jgb4tw74aP
— Ricardo Ospina (@ricarospina) March 23, 2026
#ATENTOS. Cerca de 100 personas iban a bordo de aeronave siniestrada en zona rural del Putumayo este 23MAR. El hecho fue confirmado por Min/Defensa Pedro Sánchez, quien indicó que el avión transportaba tropas de la Fuerza Pública y que aún se desconocen las causas del siniestro. https://t.co/oVJhzXgiY5 pic.twitter.com/jdhQ1RlAXw
— Colombia Oscura (@ColombiaOscura) March 23, 2026
The Colombian Aerospace Force operates a small Hercules fleet, comprising older C-130B models and newer C-130H variants, with a total inventory estimated at roughly 9 aircraft. The loss of the transport plane represents a meaningful hit to airlift capacity.
Neither local media nor the government has provided clarity on whether the troops were engaged in a training mission, routine transport, or deployment tied to the escalating border crisis with Ecuador.
The crash comes just one week after Ecuador’s Interior Minister John Reimberg deployed 75,000 troops in the South American country to combat drug cartels, while Colombian President Gustavo Petro warned that Ecuador’s campaign was spilling over and that Colombia was being “bombed.”
🚨¡OPERACIÓN “PODOCARPUS”: DESTRUCCIÓN DE 129 CAMPAMENTOS DE MINERÍA ILEGAL Y AFECTACIÓN ECONÓMICA DE $3 MILLONES A LAS MAFIAS PARA RECUPERAR TOTALMENTE ESTE TERRITORIO!🚨
➡️Con un gran despliegue militar, durante nueve días de operaciones sostenidas en el Parque Nacional… pic.twitter.com/acae76SmhX
— Ministerio de Defensa Nacional del Ecuador (@DefensaEc) March 16, 2026
Latest geopolitical report from the region:
The absence of evidence so far is foul play, well, at least in the initial reporting. But given rising tensions between Colombia and Ecuador and the broader crisis over the last week, the region warrants close monitoring.
