At least 34 Colombian soldiers were killed when an Air Force C-130 Hercules transport aircraft crashed minutes after takeoff from Puerto Leguízamo Airport in the southern Putumayo Province on Monday, with the plane coming down in dense jungle terrain just 1.5 kilometres from the runway and erupting into a massive fireball.

The aircraft experienced a technical malfunction shortly after becoming airborne and ploughed into a rural area, triggering a large fire and sending thick plumes of smoke into the sky. Putumayo Province Governor John Gabriel Molina confirmed 34 fatalities — 13 bodies have been recovered so far, while the identification of 21 others is ongoing. Twenty injured soldiers were pulled from the wreckage and rushed to hospital, where their condition remains critical. Reports vary on the total number of soldiers on board, with figures ranging between 110 and 125.

Colombian Defence Minister Pedro Arnulfo Sanchez confirmed the aircraft was on a routine inter-unit troop transfer mission, carrying soldiers, weapons, and military equipment. Emergency rescue teams were deployed immediately, but dense jungle vegetation severely hampered operations at the crash site.

President Gustavo Petro expressed deep condolences, calling the tragedy an irreparable loss for the nation and the armed forces. Significantly, he acknowledged that a decision to modernise the military's ageing aircraft fleet had already been taken but had been stalled by administrative and technical delays — warning that strict action would follow if such safety lapses were not addressed. A high-level committee has been constituted to investigate the cause of the crash.