Algerian C-130 Hercules carrying soldiers and families crashes, killing 102 people

Hercules ... a C-130 transport plane taking off from the US Marine Corps base in Futenma in Okinawa. Source: AP 

 AN ALGERIAN military transport plane has crashed in the country’s mountainous east. An Algerian official said 102 people were killed, with one survivor found.

Commander Farid Nechad, who is based in Algiers, said 55 bodies have been recovered so far from the crash and everyone besides the survivor is presumed dead.

The state news agency said the plane was flying from the far southern city of Tamanrasset to the eastern city of Constantine, and it crashed near the town of Ain Kercha in the province of Oum El Bouaghi.
Civil defence officials on the scene told journalists that women and children were among the dead at the snowy crash site about 50 kilometres south of Constantine, Algeria’s main eastern city.

The C-130, built by Lockheed, could be seen broken into three parts.
An intelligence officer earlier said that the crash killed all 103 people on board, including the plane’s four crew members. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media.

Colonel Lahmadi Bouguern, spokesman for the eastern military region, told the state news agency the crash was caused by a lack of visibility and the strong winds that have buffeted the region the past few days. Winds were 17-28 knots at the time, according to the aviation-safety.net website.

The worst plane crash in Algerian history occurred in 2003, when 102 people were killed after a civilian airliner crashed at the end of the runway in Tamanrasset

 In November 2012, an Algerian military cargo plane crashed in southern France, killing all six people aboard.