US service member, 3 contractors killed in Philippines plane crash

A US military service member and three defense contractors were killed Thursday when their plane crashed in the Philippines, officials said.The aircraft, which was contracted by the US military, had been carrying out “intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance support” when it went down in a rice field in the Maguindanao del Sur province in the country’s south, US Indo-Pacific Command said.“We can confirm no survivors of the crash,” US officials said in a statement.“The incident occurred during a routine mission in support of US-Philippine security cooperation activities.”The military didn’t reveal what type of aircraft was involved and said the cause of the wreck was still being investigated.The names of the crew were also being withheld pending family notifications, officials said.The bodies of the four people had already been retrieved from the wreckage, according to Ameer Jehad Tim Ambolodto, a safety officer in the region.  Windy Beaty, a provincial disaster-mitigation officer, said residents had spotted smoke coming from the plane and heard an explosion before the aircraft plummeted to the ground.No one else was injured on or near the wreck site, local officials said – but a water buffalo was killed as a result of the crash.The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines confirmed the crash but did not offer additional details.US forces have been deployed in a Philippine military camp in the country’s south for decades in a bid to help local forces battle Muslim militants.With Post wires...