3 killed in navy aircraft crash in South Korea's Pohang, search underway for fourth crew member

A South Korean Navy patrol aircraft carrying four crew members crashed during a training flight on Thursday, resulting in three confirmed deaths while search is underway for fourth member. The incident was reported by South Korean news agency, Yonhap.

The P-3C patrol plane took off from its base in the southeastern city of Pohang at 1:43 p.m., but went down shortly after for reasons that remain unclear, the navy said in a statement. Officials are working to confirm the condition of the people aboard and to determine the cause of the crash.

Earlier, the Navy confirmed that no civilian casualties were reported on the ground. However, later in the day, three bodies—believed to be crew members from the aircraft—were recovered from the crash site.

Rescue workers and fire trucks were dispatched to the crash site after residents reported seeing an unidentified object falling from the sky followed by an explosion. Yonhap News Agency also released photos showing firefighters and at least one water truck at the scene, with flames visible and thick black-gray smoke rising through the surrounding trees.

The incident comes months after one of South Korea ’s deadliest aviation accidents. In December, a Jeju Air passenger jet crashed at Muan International Airport in the south of the country, killing all but two of the 181 people on board.