BOGOTA (Reuters) - Fourteen people were killed in a plane crash in the Colombian plains province of Meta on Saturday, the country’s civil aviation agency said.

The Special Administrative Unit of Civil Aeronautics said there were no survivors of the crash, which occurred after the DC-3 aircraft made a distress call at 10:40 a.m. local time (1540 GMT).

The plane, which is owned by Laser Aereo airlines, was en route from the southern city of San Jose del Guaviare to central Villavicencio, the agency said.

It crashed about midway through its flight, in San Carlos de Guaroa municipality.

The airline said it had no immediate comment.

In a later statement posted on Twitter, the agency named those who had died, including the mayor of a small town in the jungle province of Vaupes.

The aircraft’s navigability permissions were up-to-date, as were the medical certifications of its crew, the agency added.</s>Falla de motor, posible causa de accidente de avión en Meta

AFP

La Aeronáutica Civil confirmó que los 14 tripulantes de la aeronave fallecieron.

Un avión DC-3 se accidentó esté sábado cerca de la ciudad de Villavicencio, en Meta, y sus 14 ocupantes murieron, incluida una alcaldesa, según organismos de socorro, que en principio atribuyeron el siniestro al fallo de un motor. (Lea aquí: En el avión accidentado viajaba la alcaldesa de Taraira, Meta)

La aeronave, de matrícula HK-2494 y que viajaba entre San José del Guaviare y Villavicencio, se declaró en emergencia hacia las 10:40am antes de caer en el paraje rural La Bendición. Aunque en un primer momento, la Defensa Civil habló de 12 ocupantes (diez pasajeros y dos tripulantes), luego la Aeronáutica Civil confirmó que fueron 14 las víctimas fatales de este suceso.

"Lamentablemente, de acuerdo con la información suministrada por los organismos de rescate que llegaron a la zona, no se encuentran sobrevivientes", agregó por su parte Aeronáutica Civil de Colombia en un comunicado.

Entre las víctimas están la alcaldesa del municipio de Taraira, Doris Villegas, su esposo y su hija, además del propietario de la aeronave, el piloto y copiloto.

El DC-3, un avión bimotor de fabricación estadounidense, volaba para Laser Aéreo, una empresa de transporte de carga y de pasajeros.

Contactada por la AFP, la compañía declinó pronunciarse sobre el accidente.

Falla de motor

La aeronave cayó en una zona despoblada rodeada de cultivos de palma de cera y próxima a una vía.

El aparato prendió fuego, dijo a la AFP un portavoz del cuerpo de bomberos.

Según el coronel Jorge Martínez, director de Defensa Civil del departamento de Meta, del que Villavicencio es capital, el siniestro pudo haberse originado en la falla de uno de los motores.

"Al momento de estar sobrevolando el municipio de San Martín se le apaga un motor a esta aeronave y el piloto, gracias a su pericia, lo trata de aterrizar (...) pero se le sale de control", declaró Martínez al canal RCN.

Sin embargo, Aeronáutica Civil no ha informado sobre las razones del siniestro.

Las fuentes de socorro en principio descartaron condiciones adversas de tiempo que pudieran haber desatado la emergencia.

No había "mal clima, ni zona de montaña o de selva" que dificultaran el vuelo, agregó un funcionario del cuerpo de bomberos bajo reserva.

Junto con la alcaldesa Villegas, su esposo e hija también murieron el piloto Jaime Carrillo, el copiloto Jaime Herrera y un técnico de aviación identificado como Álex Moreno, según el organismo.

El gobierno colombiano se solidarizó con las familias de las víctimas.

"Con dolor recibí la noticia de la muerte de 12 personas en accidente aéreo en el Meta, entre ellas Doris Lizeth Villegas, alcaldesa de Taraira, Vaupés, y su familia. Mis sentidas condolencias y mensaje de fortaleza a las familias de los fallecidos", escribió en Twitter, en su momento, la ministra del Interior Nancy Patricia Gutiérrez.

Las víctimas

El listado de ocupantes registrados por la Aeronáutica Civil es el siguiente:



1.Humberto Araque

2.Doris Villegas

3.Catalina Araque Villegas

4.Alex Rodríguez

5.Alejandro Fonseca

6. Jaime Carrillo (piloto)

7.Jaime Herrera (copiloto)

8.Camilo Lozano

9.Sandra Mejía Ibargüen

10.Juan Carlos Méndez Ramos.

11.Cristian Camilo Lozano Escobar

12. Manuel Mejía

13.Willliam Alarcon

14. Alex Moreno (Técnico)



La Aerocivil agregó que, "una vez realizadas la validaciones preliminares de aeronavegabilidad, se ha encontrado que la aeronave DC- 3, HK-2494 contaba con certificaciones vigentes. De igual manera se pudo verificar que las licencias y certificados médicos de la tripulación estaban vigentes".</s>March 10 (UPI) -- A DC-3 plane crashed in Colombia, killing all 14 aboard, the National Civil Defense said.

The flight contained 12 passengers and two pilots, according to Colombia's Civil Aviation Authority in a news release that identified the victims in the crash Saturday.

An emergency call was placed at 10:40 a.m. while the Laser Aero flight was traveling between between San Jose del Guaviare and Villavicencio, according to the agency in a CNN report. The jet was found in La Bendición, near Villavicencio.

"Unfortunately... there were no survivors," Colombia's civil aviation authority said in a statement.

The plane is configured for 20 passengers and was originally manufactured in 1945, according FlightGlobal.

Production of the Douglas DC-3, a fix-wing propeller plane, began in 1935 and ended in 1945. Less than 150 of the 607 civil versions built are still airworthy, according to FlyDC3.com.</s>An airplane crash in Colombia has killed all 12 people aboard the aircraft.

"Unfortunately... there were no survivors," Colombia's civil aviation authority said.

The Laser Aero flight made a distress call before the crash Saturday morning, officials said.

The flight originated in San Jose del Guaviare and was headed for Villavicencio.

Authorities said the remains of the plane, a DC-3, were found near Villavicencio.</s>BOGOTA, Colombia — Authorities say a dozen people have been killed in a plane crash in central Colombia.

Colombia's Civil Aviation Authority said the DC-3 aircraft declared an emergency late Saturday morning while en route to the city of Villavicencio.

Officials later confirmed that all 12 people aboard were killed in the accident.

The aircraft was reportedly operated by Laser air service and had departed from San Jose del Guaviare.

President Ivan Duque sent his condolences to the families of those killed and said authorities were working to identify the remains.</s>Fourteen people on board a plane in central Colombia were killed on Saturday after it lost contact with air traffic control and crashed following technical problems, AFP reported. Colombia’s Civil Aviation Authority said the DC-3 aircraft had declared an emergency on Saturday morning while en route to Villavicencio.

The twin-engine propeller plane, owned by Laser Aereo airlines, had departed from the town San José del Guaviare. It was forced to stop over in at San José del Guaviare because of poor weather, BBC reported. It crashed near its destination of Villavicencio and the wreckage was discovered an hour after air traffic control lost contact with the plane.

The country’s Civil Aeronautics later in a statement on Twitter named all the 14 people, including the pilot and co-pilot, who died in the accident. According to Reuters, the deceased also included the mayor of a small town in the province of Vaupes.</s>A plane crash in Central Colombia on Saturday morning has killed 14 people, officials said.

Authorities with Colombia’s Civil Aeronautics said that a DC-3 aircraft en route to Villavicencio, in the center of the nation, issued a distress call around 10:40 a.m., according to a translation of the agency’s statement.

The plane, operated by Laser air service, crashed in the vicinity of its destination after departing from San Jose del Guaviare.

Officials confirmed that all 14 people aboard, including the pilot, had died.

The victims have been identified as Jaime Carr¡iio (pilot), Jaime Herrera (co-pilot), Humberto Araque, Doris Viilegas, Cataiina Araoue VHegas, Aiex Rodríguez, Aiejandro Fonseca, Camiio Lozano, Sandra Mejía ibarguen, Juan Carlos Méndez Ramos, Cristian Camiio Lozano Escobar, Manoei Mejía, Wíllliam Alarcón and aircraft technician Alex Moreno.

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It was not immediately clear what caused the plane to go down but officials said an initial investigation revealed that the plane had “valid certifications.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.</s>At least 14 people, including a minor, died on Saturday after a Laser Airlines DC-3 aircraft crashed in the central Colombian department of Meta, officials said.

In a tweet, Colombia's Defensa Civil said that the members of the police, air force, army and volunteers from Meta had recovered 14 bodies from the wreckage of the airplane, which crashed in the village of La Bendicion, in the municipality of San Martin.</s>A dozen people have been killed in a plane crash in the Colombian plains province of Meta, a police source said on Saturday.

The civil aviation agency confirmed in a statement that there were no survivors of the crash, which occurred after the DC-3 aircraft made a distress call at 10:40 a.m. local time, but said it was working to identify and count those killed.

The plane, which is owned by Laser Aereo airlines, was en route from the southern city of San Jose del Guaviare to central Villavicencio, the agency said.

It crashed about midway through its flight in San Carlos de Guaroa municipality in the plains province of Meta.

The airline said it had no immediate comment.</s>According to the information given by the county’s civil aviation agency, in an incident that took place in Colombian plains province killed at least 14 people after a plan in which they were on board crashed.

The Special Administrative Unit of Civil Aeronautics said there were no survivors of the crash, which occurred after the 

DC-3 aircraft

The plane, which is owned by Laser Aereo airlines, was en route from the southern city of San Jose del Guaviare to central Villavicencio, the agency said.

It crashed about midway through its flight, in San Carlos de Guaroa municipality.

The airline said it had no immediate comment.

In a later statement posted on Twitter, the agency named those who had died, including the mayor of a small town in the jungle province of Vaupes.

The aircraft’s navigability permissions were up-to-date, as were the medical certifications of its crew, the agency added.
A DC-3 operated by Laser Aereo crashes in Colombia en route from San José del Guaviare, killing all 14 aboard.