A South Korean maritime patrol aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff on Thursday afternoon, killing all four crew members onboard, according to a statement from the country’s navy.
The P-3 aircraft had departed on a routine training mission from a military base in the southern city of Pohang. The navy said the crash occurred about six minutes after the aircraft left the airfield at approximately 1:43 p.m. local time (0443 GMT).
Eyewitness videos broadcast on YTN television captured the tragic incident. The footage showed the aircraft flying at a low altitude, banking steeply before crashing, followed by a large plume of smoke and flames.
The South Korean navy confirmed that the bodies of all four crew members have been recovered from the crash site. Thankfully, there were no civilian casualties reported as the crash occurred in a relatively uninhabited area near the military base.
As a precaution, the navy has grounded all P-3 aircraft pending the outcome of an official investigation into the cause of the crash. The cause of the incident remains unknown at this stage, and a detailed probe is underway.
The P-3 aircraft, originally developed by Lockheed Martin, is widely used for maritime surveillance, anti-submarine warfare, and reconnaissance missions. South Korea has operated the aircraft for decades as part of its naval defense capabilities.
Thursday’s crash marks one of the most serious peacetime aviation accidents involving South Korea’s military in recent years and is likely to prompt a review of the aircraft’s maintenance and operational readiness.
