Crash of a Lockheed C-130H Hercules in the Drake Passage: 38 killed
Date & Time:
Dec 9, 2019 at 1813 LT
Operator:
Registration:
990
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Punta Arenas - Teniente Marsh
MSN:
4776
YOM:
1978
Crew on board:
17
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
21
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
38
Circumstances:
The four engine airplane departed Santiago de Chile at 1021LT and landed at Punta Arenas for a technical stop at 1444LT. It took off at 1653LT on a leg to Teniente Rodolfo Marsh-Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva Airport located on King George Island, Antarctica, carrying 21 passengers and 17 crew members. After flying a distance of about 390 NM, while in cruising altitude, the radar contact was lost, vertical to the Drake Passage. SAR operations were initiated jointly by the Chilean, Uruguay and Argentine Air Forces which dispatched several aircraft over the area. Two days later, debris were found floating on water. It seems that none of the 38 occupants survived the crash.
