2011 Royal Moroccan Air Force Lockheed C-130 Hercules crash
Encyclopedia
On 26 July 2011, a Lockheed C-130 Hercules transport aircraft operated by the Royal Moroccan Air Force
crashed near Guelmim
, Morocco
. A statement by Moroccan authorities claimed that there were 78 fatalities and that the plane was carrying 60 members of the Moroccan Armed Forces, 12 civilians, and nine RMAF crew members. Three wounded survivors were rescued, but eventually died of their injuries. The number of fatalities was later revised to 80 when it was discovered that a passenger who had not boarded the plane had been mistakenly included in the total.
Workers have recovered the bodies of 42 victims. The aircraft has been identified as CNA-OQ, a C-130H built in 1981. It was travelling from Dakhla Airport
in the Western Sahara
to Kenitra Air Base, with a scheduled stop-over in Guelmim. The aircraft crashed into Sayyert Mountain approximately 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Guelmin.
Authorities are investigating bad weather as a potential cause. It is the deadliest aviation accident of 2011 to date, and Morocco's worst military aviation disaster.
King Mohammed VI announced three days of national mourning following the crash.
Royal Moroccan Air Force
The Royal Moroccan Air Force is the air force branch of the Moroccan Armed Forces.-History:...
crashed near Guelmim
Guelmim
Guelmim , is a town in southern Morocco, often nicknamed Gateway to the Desert . The population of the city is 95,749 . It is the capital of the Guelmim-Es Semara region which includes southern Morocco and northern Western Sahara. It is home to a camel market...
, Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
. A statement by Moroccan authorities claimed that there were 78 fatalities and that the plane was carrying 60 members of the Moroccan Armed Forces, 12 civilians, and nine RMAF crew members. Three wounded survivors were rescued, but eventually died of their injuries. The number of fatalities was later revised to 80 when it was discovered that a passenger who had not boarded the plane had been mistakenly included in the total.
Workers have recovered the bodies of 42 victims. The aircraft has been identified as CNA-OQ, a C-130H built in 1981. It was travelling from Dakhla Airport
Dakhla Airport
Dakhla Airport is an airport serving Dakhla , a city in Western Sahara.The airport is operated as a Moroccan airport, with public facilities managed by the Moroccan state-owned company ONDA....
in the Western Sahara
Western Sahara
Western Sahara is a disputed territory in North Africa, bordered by Morocco to the north, Algeria to the northeast, Mauritania to the east and south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Its surface area amounts to . It is one of the most sparsely populated territories in the world, mainly...
to Kenitra Air Base, with a scheduled stop-over in Guelmim. The aircraft crashed into Sayyert Mountain approximately 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Guelmin.
Authorities are investigating bad weather as a potential cause. It is the deadliest aviation accident of 2011 to date, and Morocco's worst military aviation disaster.
King Mohammed VI announced three days of national mourning following the crash.