The plane crashed during what U.S. Indo-Pacific Command described as “a routine mission" Authorities say four people are dead after a small military plane crashed in the Philippines. A U.S. military service member and three defense contractors were onboard the aircraft on Thursday,

The US military has confirmed that a light plane that crashed Thursday in Maguindanao del Sur, killing all four people onboard, was contracted by the US Department of Defense to provide intelligence support at the request of Philippine allies.

An aircraft contracted by the U.S. Department of Defense crashed in the southern Philippines, killing all four people on board including a member of the military, the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said in a news release. The aircraft, identified by police as a Beechcraft King Air 300, crashed Thursday afternoon in Maguindanao del Sur province.