Skip to main content

Military plane crash in Philippines kills 8

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
  • Philippine Air Force division commander among dead, ABS-CBN reports
  • Plane had dropped off a tactical operations group in Cotabato city before crash
RELATED TOPICS
  • Philippines
  • Manila

(CNN) -- A Philippine Air Force plane carrying military officials crashed in a residential area outside Manila on Thursday, killing at least eight people, CNN affiliate ABS-CBN reported.

The plane went down about 11:30 a.m. in Cotabato City and crashed into several homes before bursting into flames, said Lt. Col. Raymundo Ferrer, a military spokesman.

Among the dead was Maj. Gen. Butch Lacson, commander of a division of the Philippine Air Force, the affiliate said. Two pilots and five crewmen were also killed in the accident.

Lacson had attended a meeting of air force officials in Davao City on Wednesday, Ferrer said.

The plane left Davao City Thursday morning and had dropped off a tactical operations group at Awang Airport in Cotabato City. The aircraft went down shortly after takeoff. It was headed to Zamboanga city when it crashed.