Members of the armed forces stand guard next to the wreckage of a military plane that crashed in el Alto, near La Paz on February 27, 2026. AIZAR RALDES / AFP
At least 15 people were killed Friday, February 27, when a Bolivian military cargo plane carrying banknotes crashed while landing near the capital city La Paz, authorities said, prompting police to repel bystanders grabbing cash. The aircraft, a C-130 Hercules transport plane, veered off the runway at El Alto International Airport and crashed into an avenue, destroying multiple cars and damaging trucks, local media footage showed.
Mangled parts of the aircraft were seen on the road where the plane came down, as bystanders rushed to try and grab the scattered cash and police tried to repel the crowds with tear gas. Authorities later set the money alight in a bonfire at the scene of the crash.
It was not immediately known what caused the crash but witnesses said the weather at the time was treacherous. "A heavy hailstorm" was falling and "there was lightning" when the plane went down, Cristina Choque, a 60-year-old vendor whose car was struck by the aircraft wreckage, told AFP. "The tire is what fell on top of us... my daughter is injured, she has a head wound," she added.
