A C-130H Hercules transport plane of the United States Air Force overran the runway of Camp Taji base in Iraq during a night landing. Four of the occupants were injured.
The C-130H registered 94-6706 belonged to the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing, deployed in Ali Al Salem base in Kuwait. Upon landing, the aircraft overran the runway and hit a concrete perimeter wall, before bursting into flames.
Four of the 7 crew members and 26 passengers on board sustained non-life-threatening injuries and received treatment at the Iraqi base. Three of them were later released. As for the plane, it appeared to have been heavily damaged but has not been written off at this time.
USAF C130 Hercules crash in Iraq – per @OIRSpox ‘A USAF C-130 landing at Camp Taji Airbase, Iraq overshot the runway and crashed into a wall resulting in structural damage and a small fire.’
— CivMilAir (@CivMilAir) June 8, 2020
Non-life threatening injuries sustained. Enemy activity not suspected. pic.twitter.com/gPAvAckOkG
“The airfield crash, fire and rescue team were on the scene within 4 minutes, extinguished the fire, and assisted an evacuation of the plane,” U.S. Army Colonel Myles Caggins, spokesperson for Inherent Resolve, the coalition fighting the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, told in a statement.
There is no evidence that the latest accident was caused by hostile activity. An investigation into the runway excursion was opened. On March 11, 2020, Camp Taji was targeted by a rocket attack that killed two U.S. soldiers and a coalition service member.
