A private aircraft crashed in Bolivia on Monday morning after flying in circles over Cochabamba to exhaust its remaining fuel during an emergency landing attempt.
The aircraft, a modern Citation registered as CP-3243, was traveling from La Paz when it lost contact with air traffic control after two hours of circling the area.
Bolivian Defense Minister Marcelo Salinas confirmed the accident, noting that the plane was attempting a forced landing due to fuel depletion.
“We regret the accident of a private aircraft, a new, modern plane, which was trying for almost two hours to finish its fuel to make a forced landing in Cochabamba, but unfortunately, it crashed to the ground,” Salinas said, according to reports from La Razón.
Search and rescue operations underway
The aircraft was carrying a pilot and a co-pilot at the time of the crash.
Salinas stated that the Bolivian Air Force (FAB) has deployed search and rescue teams to the last known coordinates of the aircraft.
An FAB K8 aircraft is currently patrolling the skies over Cochabamba to pinpoint the exact location of the wreckage.
Authorities are working to identify the specific site where the plane disappeared from radar to begin recovery efforts.