Tragedy in the Nazca Desert: Thirteen Dead in Peruvian Sightseeing Plane Crash
A tourist flight operated by Aerodiana crashed near the Nazca Lines on Saturday, claiming the lives of everyone on board. Local authorities and police confirmed there are no survivors among the eleven passengers and two pilots.
Key takeaways
- A sightseeing flight crashed near the Nazca Lines in southern Peru on Saturday, resulting in 13 fatalities.
- The Aerodiana aircraft was carrying eleven passengers and two pilots when it went down in the Pueblo Viejo region.
- Police Major Jorge Andrade confirmed there were no survivors due to the extreme severity of the impact.
- This incident marks the third fatal tourist flight crash over the Nazca archaeological site since 2010.
Aviation Disaster Near UNESCO World Heritage Site
A routine sightseeing expedition over Peru's southern desert ended in disaster on Saturday when a light aircraft plummeted to the ground, killing all 13 individuals on board. The flight, operated by the regional carrier Aerodiana, was transiting the airspace above the Nazca Lines, a series of prehistoric geoglyphs and a prominent UNESCO World Heritage site. Eleven passengers and two flight crew members were confirmed dead following the impact in the Pueblo Viejo region.
Emergency Response and Recovery Operations
The aircraft departed from Pisco and was flying over the archaeological landmark when it went down at approximately 13:00 local time (19:00 BST). Police Major Jorge Andrade told reporters that the violence of the crash precluded the possibility of survivors. Search and rescue teams initiated recovery efforts immediately, with Andrade confirming that the first four bodies were retrieved shortly after the wreckage was located.
- Total Casualties: 13 (11 passengers, 2 pilots)
- Carrier: Aerodiana
- Incident Location: Pueblo Viejo, near Nazca
- Departure Point: Pisco, Peru
Official Response and Safety History
The Municipalidad Provincial de Nasca issued a formal statement via social media expressing profound grief and offering condolences to the victims' families. While the identities of the deceased and the specific mechanical or environmental causes of the crash have not been established, the incident adds to a troubling safety record for the region. This tragedy follows a 2022 crash in the same area that killed seven people, and a 2010 accident that resulted in six fatalities. Investigations into the current wreckage are ongoing to determine why the plane lost altitude.
Source: BBC — World
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