Colombian authorities said a small plane crashed Wednesday in a rural area of Norte de Santander province in northeast Colombia, killing all 15 people aboard.
The crash occurred in the rural area of the municipality of La Playa de Belen, in the northeastern Catatumbo region. The aircraft lost communication with air traffic control around midday Wednesday shortly after taking off from Cúcuta, a border city.
Satena, the airline that operates the flight, said Thursday that it had not received any prior warning of adverse weather conditions that would have prevented the flight. The company said it was awaiting the results of a formal investigation.
Satena President Gen. Óscar Zuluaga said communication between the crew and air traffic control was normal, defending the crew’s skill. He also said the pilot had more than 10,000 flight hours.
Colombia’s Civil Aeronautics Authority said it is still investigating the cause of the crash. The aviation authority said Wednesday that it had identified “permanent adverse weather conditions” at the crash site, while clarifying that it was continuing to investigate the causes of the accident.
Separately, Colombia’s Civil Defense reported Thursday that the body recovery operation had been completed after working throughout the night with support from firefighters and the Red Cross.
At a press conference with Satena, a journalist asked about the possibility of an armed attack, citing the presence of illegal armed groups such as the National Liberation Army, or ELN, in the area. Zuluaga said the region is “high-risk,” adding that the investigation would determine “whether there were any external factors that led to this outcome.”
Among the passengers was congress member Diógenes Quintero, who represented victims of Colombia’s internal armed conflict in his region. Quintero, a lawyer, was seeking reelection in the March legislative elections.
The AP said Quintero was a human rights defender in the Catatumbo region and previously served as the regional ombudsman before becoming a congressman. It said he was elected in 2022 as one of 16 representatives in the lower chamber representing more than 9 million victims of Colombia’s decades-long armed conflict, with the seats created as part of the 2016 peace agreement between the Colombian government and the FARC.
Quintero’s death was mourned by members of Congress from across the political spectrum, and by the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, which described him as a “partner” in advocacy work for human rights protection in the region. Also traveling were Natalia Acosta; Carlos Salcedo, who was running for Congress to represent victims of the armed conflict; María Alejandra Avendaño, an employee of the Norwegian Refugee Council; and Karen Liliana Perales, from World Vision.
Doctors Without Borders said it offered its “deepest condolences to the members of the humanitarian and social organizations who dedicated their work to serving the communities,” in a statement on Thursday.