Authorities in Peru grounded the sightseeing carrier Aerodiana following a fatal crash on Aug. 1, 2026, that killed all 13 people aboard a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan operating a tourist flight over the Nazca Lines.
The victims included 11 European tourists and two Peruvian crew members. No one survived.
Distress Call Cited Mechanical Trouble
Peruvian Foreign Trade and Tourism Minister Rogers Valencia confirmed pilots transmitted a distress call reporting mechanical problems to the Nazca airfield control tower before the aircraft went down. That radio contact was the final communication authorities received from the crew.
Whether the reported malfunction directly triggered the disaster remains under investigation by Peru’s Aviation Accident Investigation Commission, which is analyzing the distress transmission, flight trajectory and debris from the crash site. Speaking at the scene, Valencia said examining the wreckage would yield a thorough picture of the sequence of events and that results were anticipated soon.
The Cessna departed Pisco Airport around 1 p.m. local time carrying 11 passengers on a tour of the Nazca Lines, among Peru’s most popular archaeological destinations. Contact with the control tower ceased at approximately 1:20 p.m., and the plane crashed in the vicinity of Pueblo Viejo, about 6 km from Nazca and approximately 12 km from the geoglyph site.
Police Major Jorge Andrade, addressing reporters at the wreckage, confirmed the death count and described challenging conditions for emergency crews. Fire erupted swiftly at the desert crash site, where firefighters and police worked through burning debris, making any rescue attempts impossible.
European Passengers and Peruvian Pilots Perished
The 11 tourists who died included seven passengers from Italy ranging in age from 18 to 54, a pair of 52-year-old Spanish travelers, and two Germans aged 77 and 78. The flight crew — pilot Americo Salazar Cuellar and copilot Irenka Guanilo del Carpio, both from Peru — also lost their lives.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni wrote on social media expressing her deepest condolences to the victims’ families “at this time of immense grief.” The Italian Foreign Ministry said its embassy in Lima had been coordinating with Peruvian authorities, and that families of the Italian victims had already been notified. Both the Italian and German consuls attended the crash site, according to Minister Valencia.
Peruvian President Keiko Fujimori expressed regret over the accident and said authorities were evaluating a temporary suspension of the airport, pending assessments from relevant ministries.
Peru’s Ministry of Transportation and Communications directed Aerodiana to suspend all operations while the investigation continues, requiring the company to stay grounded pending investigation, saying the company must remain grounded “until investigations are completed to verify the company’s compliance with the applicable aviation regulations, procedures and operating requirements.”
Ancient Geoglyphs Draw Tourists to Risky Flights
The Nazca Lines, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, consist of massive ancient geoglyphs carved into the southern Peruvian desert between AD 200 and 700. The enormous designs — showing animals including monkeys, hummingbirds, cats and whales, plus geometric shapes stretching several kilometers — cannot be seen properly from ground level and require aerial viewing for proper observation. UNESCO has characterized the location as one of archaeology’s most mysterious puzzles due to the sheer number, character, scale and persistence of the designs.
That necessity for airborne observation has fueled a thriving small-plane tour business in the area — and a history of fatal accidents. In 2022, a small aircraft crashed, claiming seven lives among them two Chilean passengers and three from the Netherlands. An AirNasca aircraft went down in October 2010 after completing a tour of the lines, killing all aboard including British tourists and the Peruvian crew. Earlier that same year, a Cessna 206 crash in the region killed three Chilean and four Peruvian occupants. Five French tourists died in an April 2008 overflight accident, though that plane’s pilot survived.
Carrier’s Operations Halted Amid Investigation
Aerodiana, which has provided aerial tours of the Nazca Lines for 18 years, released a statement saying the tragedy had profoundly impacted the organization and pledging complete cooperation with the investigation. The company emphasized its longstanding dedication to the safety of passengers and crew.
Peru drew more than 4.1 million foreign visitors in 2025 to attractions including the Incan ruins of Machu Picchu and the Nazca Lines. The country has a population of just under 35 million. The series of crashes near the Nazca Lines have prompted recurring concerns about the safety standards governing the small aircraft operators that serve the site, and the disaster is likely to intensify those calls for tighter oversight as investigators work to determine a cause.