COLOMBIA – A passenger plane operated by Colombia’s state-run airline Satena has crashed in a mountainous area of northern Colombia, killing all 15 people on board, authorities have confirmed.
In a statement, Satena said the aircraft — a Beechcraft 1900 — was involved in a “fatal accident” while operating Flight NSE 8849, which was travelling from the city of Cúcuta to Ocaña, near the Venezuelan border.
The plane was carrying 13 passengers and two crew members. Contact was lost about 11 minutes before it was scheduled to land in Ocaña at 12:05pm local time (17:05 GMT) on Wednesday.
Search teams later located the wreckage in rugged mountainous terrain in Norte de Santander department, prompting a recovery operation involving Colombia’s armed forces.
Governor William Villamizar confirmed that at least seven bodies had been recovered so far.
Among those killed were lawmaker Diógenes Quintero Amaya and Carlos Salcedo, a candidate in Colombia’s upcoming congressional elections.
The official passenger list released by Satena confirmed their presence on the ill-fated flight.
Quintero held one of the 16 special seats in Colombia’s parliament reserved for victims of the country’s long-running internal conflict between the state, the now-defunct Farc rebel group, and other armed organisations.
A statement shared on Quintero’s Facebook page described him as “a man who throughout his life served those who needed it most,” paying tribute to his work representing communities affected by violence.
The crash occurred in an area known to have pockets of control by the National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrilla group, complicating access for rescue and recovery teams.
Satena said a hotline has been set up to assist relatives seeking information about their loved ones, as investigations into the cause of the crash begin.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro expressed his condolences on X, saying: “I am deeply sorry for these deaths.”
Authorities are expected to release more details once recovery efforts are complete and investigators assess the wreckage.
