Military To Use 'Every Resource' To Probe Crash Of C-130 In Georgia

PORT WENTWORTH, Ga. (CBSNewYork/AP) — The U.S. military has launched its investigation into the crash of a C-130 cargo plane that killed nine Puerto Rican airmen after takeoff in Georgia.

Col. Pete Boone of the Georgia Air National Guard told reporters Thursday that investigators will "use every resource at our disposal to properly identify a cause."

Boone said the military has also confirmed all nine airmen on board died when the large aircraft plunged onto a highway near Savannah, causing a large fireball and explosion. He said families of the dead are being notified.

"We are a close-knit family and when a tragedy like this occurs, every member of the armed forces feels it," he said.

Boone said the plane was in Savannah for "routine maintenance" and crashed after taking off for Arizona. He said he did not know if the flight crew made a distress call to air traffic control before the crash.

Boone said a military mortuary assistance team arrived overnight, but he didn't know if all the bodies had been recovered.

Officials with the Puerto Rico Air National Guard have said the aircraft was 60 years old, but Boone said its age was closer to 40.

(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)