Chilean military plane carrying 38 people goes missing

A Chilean military plane carrying 38 people on board while flying to a base in Antarctica has disappeared.



The cargo plane, identified as a Hercules C130, departed from the southern city of Punta Arenas at 4:55 p.m. on Monday evening (Dec.9) to the country's base in Antarctica. But an hour later, operators lost radio contact.



The C-130 Hercules which was carrying 17 crew members and 21 passengers, including three civilians were traveling to provide logistical support to a military base on Antarctica's King George Island.



The air force "continues the search in the sector where communication with the aircraft was lost, in order to rescue potential survivors," a statement said.



President Sebastian Pinera has disclosed that he and Interior Minister Gonzalo Blumel would fly to Punta Arenas where they would meet up with Defense Minister Alberto Espina to monitor a search and rescue mission to locate the missing plane and its passengers.



The air force posted a map showing the location of the plane before it went missing.