A serious plane crash in southern Peru has claimed the lives of 13 people, including 11 foreign tourists and two crew members.
The incident occurred on Saturday afternoon, shortly after 1:00 p.m. local time, in a farming area in the province of Nazca (Ica region), world agencies reported, citing a statement from the Peruvian National Police.
According to initial information disseminated by the leading local media network RPP Noticias, the small Cessna Caravan C-208 aircraft lost radio contact with the control tower a few minutes after taking off from the airport in the city of Pisco. The aircraft was on a regular tourist flight to view the world-famous ancient geoglyphs - the Nazca Lines.
Identification of victims and nationalities
The Peruvian Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism confirmed that citizens of three European countries were on board. The country's state news agency Agencia Andina publishes official passenger distribution data:
- 7 Italian citizens
- 2 German citizens
- 2 Spanish citizens
The two Peruvian pilots who flew the aircraft also died on the spot. Due to the severe collision and subsequent fire, rescue teams have not found any survivors in the Pueblo Viejo area (about 6 kilometers from the city of Nazca).
Possible causes of the accident
The official investigation into the causes of the tragedy is already underway, with both a technical malfunction and adverse weather conditions being investigated. Local sources quoted by Reuters, remind that flights over the Nazca Lines were temporarily suspended on Friday, July 31, due to strong winds (over 40 km/h), which raise dust and drastically reduce visibility in the desert region. Flights were resumed on Saturday, immediately before the fatal incident.
The airline operator Aerodiana, which has been operating panoramic tours in the region for 14 years, announced that it would cooperate with the authorities and review its flight schedules in accordance with the instructions of the General Directorate of Civil Aviation (DGAC) of Peru.