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CatastrophePeru

Plane crash near Peru's Nazca lines claims 7 lives

February 5, 2022

Five tourists and two flight crew have died after a plane on a trip to the Nazca lines crashes after takeoff. Local authorities say Dutch and Chilean tourists were among the dead.

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Residents walk past the crash site of a small plane in Nazca, Peru
Local emergency services said the plane burst into flames after hitting the ground, with no survivors to be foundImage: Jose Tejada/AP/picture alliance

A light aircraft with five tourists on board and two flight crew crashed on a trip to view Peru's famous Nazca lines.

The country's transport ministry and local police confirmed the incident on Friday.

What we know about the crash

According to a statement from the local tour operator Aero Santos, the plane was a Cessna 207 single-engine. The aircraft had come down shortly after takeoff from the Maria Reiche airport in Nazca around midday.

According to the Nazca chief of police the plane burst into flames after hitting the ground. Reuters news agency cited local police as saying the deceased included three Dutch tourists, two Chilean tourists and then two Peruvian pilots.

The cause of the crash is under investigation.

New geoglyphs near Nazca Lines

Popular tourist attraction

The Nazca lines are a UNESCO World Heritage site, and are a popular tourist attraction.

The ancient archaeological site has giant geoglyphs which are designs and figures including a monkey, spider and pelican among others.

Many tourists use local tour operators to fly over the site for a bird's eye view of the huge murals.

The site covers an area of around 400 square kilometers (250 square miles) and is situated around 400 kilometers south of the capital city Lima.

In October 2010, four British tourists and two Peruvian flights crew died when their plane crashed.

kb/aw (AFP,AP, Reuters)