Missing Chilean plane yet to be found as U.S. joins search team

A Chilean Air Force plane with 38 people on board is yet to be located after it went missing on Monday night.

According to CNN, the C-130 Hercules aircraft had departed from the Chilean capital of Santiago and stopped briefly in Punta Arenas near the country’s southern tip.

The plane then continued toward’s the Antarctic base before losing radio contact around 6 p.m. local time near the Drake Passage.

It is presumed that the plane has crashed given that the amount of fuel and the plane’s autonomy had already run out.

After the plane lost contact, the Air Force declared a state of emergency and mobilized a search and a rescue team to locate the plane.

The maritime authorities are currently searching for the survivors of the plane around the area where it was last seen.

According to a Press release from the Chilean Air Force, Argentina, Uruguay and the United States have joined the search effort.

The search efforts will continue for six days , the Air Force General Eduardo Mosqueira told CNN that the plane was in good condition during take off.

The first C-130 Hercules entered into service in the US Air Force in the 1950’s and more modern models were introduced in the 1970’s and 1990’s.