Cimitarra – Bucaramanga

On February 21, 1978 at 12:00 AM, Cimitarra – Bucaramanga experienced a crash involving Douglas C-47 Skytrain (DC-3), operated by SATENA - Servicio de Aeronavegacion a Territorios Nacionales, with the event recorded near Mt San Vicente (Serranía de Los Cobardes) Santander.

The flight was categorized as military and the reported phase was flight at a mountains crash site.

5 people were known to be on board, 5 fatalities were recorded, 0 survivors were identified or estimated. This corresponds to an estimated fatality rate of 100.0%.

Crew on board: 5, crew fatalities: 5, passengers on board: 0, passenger fatalities: 0, other fatalities: 0.

The crew was returning to Bucaramanga-Palonegro Airport after military personnel have been dropped off in Cimitarra for the upcoming elections. En route, the airplane struck the slope of Mt San Vicente located in the Cordillera de los Cobardes (Serranía Los Cobardes). The aircraft was destroyed upon impact and all five occupants were killed. Crew: Cpt José Francisco López Rodriguez, pilot, Lt Hernán Bravo Bustamante, copilot, Fernando Hincapié Gómez, technician, Euledonio Roa Bautista, technician, Luis Gerardo Maffia Benavides, technician.

Aircraft reference details include registration FAC-668.