The Department of National Defence said that at least 45 people died and 53 were injured Sunday when a Philippine military aircraft carrying troops crashed and burst into flames after missing the runway in the country’s south. 

The plane crashed while trying to land on Jolo island in Sulu province, the chief of the armed forces, General Cirilito Sobejana, told AFP. At least 40 people have been rescued from the burning wreckage of the C-130 and are being treated at a local hospital. 

“While transporting our troops from Cagayan de Oro (on the southern island of Mindanao), it missed the runway, trying to regain power but it didn’t make it,” Sobejana told local media, describing the accident as “very unfortunate”.

“Responders are at the site now, we are praying we can save more lives,” Sobejana told AFP.

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Many of the passengers on board the flight had recently graduated from basic military training and were being deployed to the restive island as part of a joint task force fighting terrorism in the Muslim-majority region.

The military has a heavy presence in the southern Philippines where militant groups, including the kidnap-for-ransom outfit Abu Sayyaf, operate.

C-130 aircraft are used to transport troops and supplies and are also often deployed to deliver humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

Last month, a Black Hawk helicopter crashed in Manila during a night-time training flight, killing all six on board. Three pilots and three airmen died when their S70-i went down near the Crow Valley training range north of Manila, prompting the grounding of the entire fleet.