Plane crash kills 45 military personnel in the Philippines: What you need to know

Picture Courtesy: CNN

1. A Philippine air force aircraft carrying troops crashed while trying to land Sunday.

2. At least 45 military personnel were killed and 50 rescued from the burning wreckage.

3. The aircraft -130 Hercules has 92 persons on board. It was carrying troops from Cagayan de Oro on the South Island of Mindanao when it 'missed the runway' as it tried to land in Jolo. The aircraft overshot the landing strip and broke into two, according to initial reports.

4. Some of the soldiers were seen jumping out of the plane before it hit the ground and exploded into flames, said Major General William Gonzales, commander of the Joint Task Force-Sulu.

5. A search was still underway for missing people

6. Most of the passengers had recently graduated from basic military training and were being deployed to the restive island for fighting terrorism in the Muslim majority region. They were supposed to report on duty on Sunday.

7. It was the fourth military aircraft accident this year with mass casualties. The aircraft was acquired from the US and delivered to the Philippines earlier this year.

8. Officials said that there is no sign of any attack and investigation would start once the rescue operation is completed.