AT LEAST 18 people have died after a drone attack on a police helicopter and a car bomb in Colombia.

A vehicle filled with explosives blew up near a military aviation school earlier, killing five people and injuring more than 30, cops confirmed.

Meanwhile, authorities said at least 12 died in a drone attack on a helicopter carrying personnel to an area in Antioquia in northern Colombia.

Antioquia governor Andres Julian said a drone struck the helicopter as it flew over coca leaf crops.

One local, who was nearby at the time, said they heard a “thunderous” sound of something exploding near the airbase.

Terrifying footage shows vehicles charred from the crash as a mass of debris covers the ground.

Meanwhile, thick plumes of black smoke billow in a forested area in the country’s north.

Defence Minister Pedro Sánchez referred to the explosion as a “terrorist attack” and blamed the “the narco cartel alias Mordisco”.

He posted online, stating: “This cowardly assault on civilians is a desperate response to losing control over drug trafficking in Valle del Cauca, Cauca, and Nariño, areas where the Public Force has significantly neutralized this threat.”

The attacks have been linked to different dissident factions of the now non-existent Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) group.

After the dreadful attacks, the president and military leaders declared they would convene a security council meeting to “determine additional protective measures” for the residents.

It comes as the country has suffered a rise in violence in recent months with drone attacks becoming increasingly more common.

Last year, 115 such attacks were recorded in Colombia, while last week three soldiers were killed in a drone strike in the country’s south west.