On July 4, 2021, a Lockheed C-130 Hercules aircraft of the Philippine Air Force (PAF) crashed after an attempted landing at Jolo Airport in Sulu, Philippines. With 53 deaths, of which 50 people were on the aircraft and 3 on the ground, the incident is the deadliest aviation accident in Philippine military history, the fourth deadliest on Philippine soil, and the second deadliest to occur in 2021, behind Sriwijaya Air Flight 182.
The aircraft involved in the incident is a Lockheed C-130H Hercules operated by the Philippine Air Force (PAF) with the tail number 5125. A former United States Air Force aircraft in service since February 1988, it was acquired by the PAF through a grant by the United States government’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency in January 2021. The Philippine military has maintained that the aircraft was in good condition and had 11,000 flying hours left before its next maintenance was due. The PAF has three other C-130s in its inventory prior to the crash; two C-130s undergoing maintenance and repair in Portugal and one C-130 operational.
Passengers and crew
At the time of the crash, there were 104 military personnel on board; including 3 pilots and 5 other aircrew. 50 of the personnel came from the Philippine Army’s 4th Infantry Division training unit of Malaybalay, Bukidnon.Five military vehicles were also on board. The soldiers on board were meant to augment the Jolo-based 11th Infantry Division which is after the Abu Sayyaf group operating in the area.
Accident
On July 4, 2021, the aircraft took off from Villamor Air Base in Pasay and headed to Lumbia Airfield in Cagayan de Oro.
From Cagayan de Oro, the aircraft transported personnel to Jolo, Sulu. At 11:30 a.m. Philippine Time (UTC+08:00), the plane crashed after attempting to land at Jolo Airport. The aircraft overshot the runway, crashed in the nearby municipality of Patikul, and caught fire.
Fifty military personnel on board, including the pilot in command, and 3 civilians on the ground died, while 46 occupants on board and 4 civilians on the ground were injured.The 3 civilian deaths involved quarry workers.
The crash is the Philippine Air Force’s deadliest aviation accident in history, surpassing the 1971 crash in which killed 40 people.
