A Chilean military plane traveling to Antarctica disappeared.
This is the Hercules C130 that fulfilled tasks of logistical support and supply for the Chilean base Eduardo Frei.
The aircraft was declared “damaged” after seven hours of the incident and a rescue operation was activated with aircraft and Navy ships
The newspaper Infobae confirmed that the plane left on Monday from the city of Punta Arenas, in southern Chile, disappeared with 38 people on board in the Drake Sea when it was heading towards Antarctica, activating a search operation, according to A statement from the Air Force reported.
The aircraft took off at 1655 (1955 GMT) from the base of the Chilean Air Force (FACH) Chabunco in Punta Arenas (3,016 km at the southern tip of Chile) heading to Eduardo Frei base in Antarctica, and “lost communication radio ”at 18H13 (21H13 GMT), according to the statement.
“On board the C130 Hercules travel 38 people, of which 17 are crew of the aircraft and 21 passengers,” the statement added.
The aircraft was declared “wrecked” after seven hours of the incident, said FACH, adding that the plane had fuel to stay in the air until 00H40 (03H40 GMT) on Tuesday.
He also added that “search efforts continue to rescue potential survivors” and that relatives of those on board the plane were contacted “to keep them informed of this unfortunate situation.”
“It is possible a tie-up,” Eduardo Mosqueira, commander of the IV Air Brigade in a Punta Arenas, told reporters.
The entire crew belongs to the FACH and among the passengers, 15 are from the FACh, three are members of the Army and three are civilians: two people from the engineering company Inproser and one person from the University of Magellan.
The aircraft that took off from the Chabunco air base in Punta Arenas (3,016 km south of Santiago) carried out logistical support tasks and moved personnel to review the floating fuel supply pipeline of the base in Antarctica and perform anticorrosive treatment of installations.
He was halfway to Antarctica when he disappeared, lost communication when he was flying over the sea of Drake (or Hoces), a sea passage between the American continent and Antarctica considered by navigators as the most stormy on the planet.
“The weather conditions for flying were good, that’s why the flight was planned,” said Francisco Torres, FACH Director of Operations, in a final incident report.
In yellow the point of impact. In red the arrival airport.
To reach the destination, approximately 500 kilometers were missing, that is, one hour of flight depending on the wind conditions.
In yellow the point of impact. In red the arrival airport.
To reach the destination, approximately 500 kilometers were missing, that is, one hour of flight depending on the wind conditions.
FACH declared “alert status for the loss of communications” and a rescue operation was activated with aircraft – one of them from Uruguay – and Chilean Navy ships, “in order to rescue potential survivors.”
“It has begun, and is in process, the search and rescue,” said Torres, who added that four merchant ships are within a 60-mile radius of the area where contact with the aircraft was lost.
The plane has an ELT system that indicates its satellite position, but during the morning it had been unsuccessful to help in the location of the aircraft, Commander Mosqueira explained.
Four ships are in the area: one has been in the sector for half an hour, while the other three will arrive in the next few hours.
Source: Rosario3
