In brief
A small Cessna Caravan fell while flying above Peru’s famous Nazca Lines, killing all 13 people on board, including eleven tourists from Germany, Spain and Italy. The aircraft departed from Pisco Airport and went down in the Pueblo Viejo region at 13:00 local time. Local authorities, Peruvian officials and the airline Aerodiana are investigating the cause, while emergency services have recovered four bodies so far. This tragedy follows previous crashes over the same site in 2010 and 2022, highlighting ongoing risks for tourist aviation over the geoglyphs.
A small aircraft crashed over Peru’s Nazca Lines, killing all 13 passengers and crew on board
A Cessna Caravan C‑208 aircraft carrying 11 foreign tourists and its crew of two pilots went down while flying above the famed Nazca Lines archaeological site on Saturday, according to Peruvian authorities.
The plane left the Pisco airport at 13:00 local time and crashed in the Pueblo Viejo region, reportedly 30 kilometres from the city of Nazca. The flight was part of a popular aerial tour over the UNESCO‑listed geoglyphs.
Police major Jorge Andrade announced that no survivors had been found and that four bodies had been recovered. The remaining nine remain missing.
The state news agency cited that the passenger list included two German nationals, two Spaniards and seven Italians. A statement from the municipal government of Nasca expressed deep sorrow for the tragedy and voiced heartfelt condolences to the families.
Aerodiana, the Peruvian airline operating the flight, said it would assess its schedules in line with directives from the relevant authorities. The airline’s spokesperson has not yet provided further details.
The Nazca Lines have seen several aviation mishaps in recent decades. In 2010, a tourist plane crashed there killing six passengers; a similar accident occurred in 2022, resulting in seven fatalities.
Authorities are still determining the exact cause, but officials stress that the incident marks a serious reminder of the risks associated with aerial sightseeing over this world heritage site.
