Two officers of the Armed Forces died this afternoon during a plane crash that occurred in passage 25 of the main street of the residential Bosques de La Paz, in Ilopango.
The Armed Forces later identified them as captains Roberto Guillermo Castro Martínez (pilot) and Nelson Iván Saldaña Alfaro.
According to reports, Castro had 17 years of flight experience.
The neighbors report that loud noises were heard like the engine of the plane was drowning.
Then in a couple of seconds the ship lowered at high speed, hit a tree and then against the back of a house.
“There was a rumble and then it fell. It raised a lot of dust at the time of the fall. The house has no inhabitants, only a dog, but apparently it is alive,” said a witness.
Several rescuers and military chiefs arrived next to the defense minister, René Francis Merino, to organize the evacuation of the bodies of the aviation pilots.
The official remained in the area for 20 minutes and withdrew from the scene of the accident after giving several orders to other soldiers.
The two victims were trapped between the irons of the machine and it was necessary to use hydraulic equipment to evacuate the bodies.
At the time of the impact, the Air Force siren was activated, which is located a few blocks from the crash.
The Armed Forces issued a statement in which he regretted the fact and reported that the injured aircraft was a T-35 PILLAN registration FAS 74.
According to the institution, the plane was maneuvering to land on the runway of the Ilopango airport.
The military institution indicated that the Salvadoran Air Force will initiate the respective investigation to determine the causes.
Preliminary information indicates that the machine had mechanical problems, but this has not been confirmed.
From the pilot Castro Martínez it transpired that he had 17 years of experience. Defense did not give details about the profile of the two dead officers.
Dozens of neighbors came to the scene, who expressed concern about living in this area of the Air Force.
“We thought it had been a traffic accident on the road, but when we saw a lot of smoke coming out, we learned that it was a plane. We couldn’t do anything for the pilots, they were below the ship,” said Teresa Argueta, a neighbor.
After several minutes, the authorities evicted the neighbors and enlarged the restricted scene.
Source: Elsalvador
