Six dead when a military plane crashes in central Bolivia

The deceased are “four soldiers and two civilians” who were on the aircraft Cessna FAB-409of the Bolivian Air Force (FAB), the ministry said in a press release in which it also expressed its “deep condolences to the families and comrades of the crew members who lost their lives fulfilling their duty to the country.”

Meanwhile, police colonel Wilson Flores informed the media in the city of Cochabamba that “All six occupants of the aircraft died”.

The plane made an aerial patrol in some points of the highway between La Paz and that city that continued to be taken over by protesters despite the emergency which the government declared on Saturday after more than 50 days of protests with roadblocks by unions demanding the resignation of President Rodrigo Paz.

The Cessna “was carrying out a civic action support flight on the La Paz-Cochabamba route” in the center of the country.

The aircraft lost contact, so the authorities began the search with teams on the ground, The FAB said in its statement and added that “the emergency protocols were immediately activated, and the damaged aircraft was found in the Cerro Sayari sector in Cochabamba.”

At the same time, they highlighted that the “investigative board to clarify the causes of the event.”

According to the Ministry of Defense, the crashed plane recently completed a “humanitarian mission” to transport children sick with cancer from the Andean region of Oruro to specialized centers, beforeand roadblocks carried out by some sectors against the Government of Rodrigo Paz.

That institution and the General Command of the Bolivian Air Force paid tribute to the deceased, in recognition of “their service to the nation” and committed to “accompany the affected families in this difficult moment.”

Although roadblocks have been suspended in much of the country, they still continue in certain regions of Cochabamba led by coca grower unions related to former President Evo Morales (2006-2019), whom the government accuses of encouraging protests with “destabilizing” purposes of the government, according to presidential spokesman José Luis Gálvez.