All 13 killed in tourist plane crash at Peru Nazca Lines site
All 13 people aboard a tourist flight have died after a small passenger plane crashed near the world-famous Nazca Lines in southern Peru on Saturday, July 1.
The aircraft, a Cessna C-208 Caravan operated by local airline Aerodiana, went down around 1:00 PM local time in the Pueblo Viejo region shortly after taking off from Pisco Airport.
European tourists among the victims
Peru's state news agency confirmed that the flight carried eleven passengers and two pilots. The passengers included seven Italian, two German, and two Spanish nationals.
Police Major Jorge Andrade stated that emergency crews found no survivors at the scene due to the severity of the impact. Pisco firefighters were filmed extinguishing flames engulfing the charred wreckage in the desert sand.
Investigation and aviation safety history
In an official statement published online, the Provincial Municipality of Nasca expressed deep condolences to the victims' families. Aerodiana announced it is cooperating with authorities and reviewing its flight schedules following directives from aviation regulators.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation.
The Nazca Lines, a UNESCO World Heritage site, attract thousands of global visitors annually who take low-altitude flights to view the ancient geoglyphs etched into the desert floor. However, the region has seen similar air disasters over the past decades.
In 2022, a tourist flight crash in the same area claimed seven lives, while a similar incident in 2010 resulted in six fatalities.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
