FOUR children who were missing after a plane crash in the Amazon jungle have been found alive after six weeks.

The brothers, ages one, four, nine, and 13, were traveling in a small aircraft on May 1 when the plane went down in Colombia.

The children’s mother, Magdalena Mucutui Valencia, was killed in the crash along with the pilot and an indigenous leader.

When the aircraft was recovered by the Colombian military, there was no sign of the boys, sparking an intense search to find them.

Now, military sources told the Colombian press that the children have been found alive.

The children were reportedly dehydrated and had insect bites but were otherwise in good condition.

The President of Colombia Gustavo Petro shared the good news on Twitter, writing: “A joy for the whole country!

“The four children who were lost 40 days ago in the Colombian jungle appeared alive.”

‘OPERATION HOPE’

The group was flying from a jungle location to San Jose del Guaviare, one of the main cities in Colombia’s Amazon rainforest.

Giant trees that can grow up to 40 meters tall and heavy rainfall made the “Operation Hope” search difficult.

Three helicopters were deployed, one of which blasted out a recorded message from the children’s grandmother in their native Huitoto language, telling them to stop moving through the jungle.

Rescuers were able to find some of the children’s belongings along with a makeshift shelter and half-eaten food.

In photographs released by the military, scissors, shoes, and hair ties could be seen among branches on the jungle floor.

A baby’s drinking bottle and half-eaten pieces of fruit had been spotted before the shelter’s discovery.

Searches intensified after the discovery of the children’s items, with sniffer dogs brought in to help.

The children are from the Indigenous Huitoto community, also spelled Witoto, who are known for living in harmony with the remote jungle.

Huitoto leaders hoped that the children would use their knowledge of fruits and the jungle to survive, giving them a better chance of being found alive.

TRAGIC CRASH

Authorities have not yet revealed what caused the plane crash.

The pilot had reported problems with the engine just minutes before the plane disappeared from radars, Colombia’s disaster response body said.

It is a region with few roads and is also difficult to access by river, so airplane transport is common.

The community develops skills in hunting, fishing and gathering, which may have helped the children to survive.

Exploitation, disease and assimilation have reduced the population sharply over many decades.

Manuel Ranoque, whose wife and four children were on the plane, told local media: “I would give anything to have my family by my side to pamper them.

“May God forgive us if we have failed in something.”