All 15 killed as Satena plane crashes in remote mountainous area of northeast Colombia

A small aircraft operated by Colombia’s state-owned airline Satena crashed on Wednesday in a remote, mountainous area of Norte de Santander province in northeastern Colombia, killing all 15 people on board, authorities confirmed as the country launched a formal investigation.

The Beechcraft aircraft, registered as HK4709 , departed from Camilo Daza International Airport in Cucuta at around 11:42 am local time and was bound for Ocana , a municipality surrounded by rugged terrain. The flight, which usually lasts about 40 minutes, lost contact with air traffic control roughly 12 minutes after takeoff, shortly before it was expected to continue along its scheduled route.

Local residents in the rural community of Curasica later helped authorities locate the wreckage in a hard-to-access area near La Playa de Belen. Rescue teams were immediately dispatched, but Colombia’s Transportation Ministry said that once the aircraft was reached, officials regrettably confirmed there were no survivors .

The plane was carrying two crew members and 13 passengers. Among the victims was Diogenes Quintero, a representative of victims of Colombia’s internal armed conflict who held a special seat created under the 2016 peace agreement. Authorities later confirmed that all those on board had been identified and their families notified.

Officials said recovery efforts have been complicated by steep terrain, dense vegetation, and changing weather conditions in the region. Some bodies have already been recovered, while operations continue to secure the crash site and retrieve remaining remains.

Preliminary reports indicate that the aircraft’s emergency locator transmitter did not activate, delaying its discovery. Authorities have not confirmed a cause of the crash, though weather conditions and the challenging mountainous environment are among the factors being examined.

The Colombian government, along with civil aviation authorities, has launched a full investigation into the incident. President Gustavo Petro and other senior officials expressed condolences to the families of the victims, while Satena said it is cooperating fully with investigators and providing assistance to those affected.