Commercial flight vanishes before crashing in Colombia, killing all 15 people on board, including congressman

Colombia’s state-owned airline Satena confirmed commercial Flight HK-4709 crashed after disappearing near the Colombian-Venezuelan border Wednesday, killing all 15 people on board, including a Colombian politician.

The airline said the Beechcraft 1900, operating the Cúcuta-Ocaña route, departed at 11:42 a.m. and was scheduled to land at approximately 12:05 p.m.

It’s last contact with air traffic control was at 11:54 a.m., and it would have exhausted its flight endurance time at 2 p.m.

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When officials realized the flight had lost contact, Satena said aircraft from the Colombian Aerospace Force, National Army and charter flight company Searca initiated aerial overflight operations in the areas where the last available information on the aircraft was recorded.

The aircraft also searched along the missing plane’s planned route.

Just before 5:30 p.m., Satena confirmed the plane crashed leaving no survivors, citing information from the president of the Community Action Board of the Curásica rural district in the municipality of La Playa de Belén.

The two crew members were identified as Capt. Miguel Vanegas and Capt. Jose de la Vega.

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The 13 passengers were identified as María Álvarez Barbosa, Carlos Salcedo, Rolando Penaloza Gualdron, María Díaz Rodríguez, Maira Avendano Rincon, Anayisel Quintero, Karen Parales Vera, Anirley Julio Osorio, Gineth Rincon, Diogenes Quintero Amaya, Natalia Acosta Salcedo Maira Sánchez Criado and Juan Pacheco Mejía.

Diogenes Quintero Amaya was a member of the House of Representatives of Colombia, according to a report from The City Paper Bogotá. Carlos Salcedo was a candidate for Colombia’s House of Representatives.

“From Satena, we extend our most sincere condolences, with profound sorrow and full solidarity, to the families of our passengers and crew members who lost their lives in this accident,” the airline said in a statement. 

Satena added it will deploy all of its resources to provide humanitarian assistance to the victims’ families and to “clarify the circumstances of what occurred.”

The airline is heavily used by government officials and tourists and connects the capital with small regional airports in the capitals of Colombia’s 32 states.

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The area where the plane disappeared, near Colombia’s border with Venezuela, is known for its mountainous terrain and poor visibility.

Local newspaper El Tiempo reported there have been heavy rains for weeks between Cucuta and the Catatumbo region, which has seen recent violence, including targeted killings, kidnappings and forced displacement of civilians.