7 killed when plane on Nazca lines tour crashes in Peru

Authorities in Peru say a light plane carrying sightseers on a tour of the huge Nazca lines scratched in a coastal desert has crashed, killing all seven people aboard

LIMA, Peru -- A light plane carrying sightseers for a tour of the Nazca lines in the Peruvian desert crashed Friday, killing all seven people aboard, authorities said.

Brigadier Juan Tirado, a firefighter with the 82nd Fire Company in Nazca, said the plane went down near an airfield in the city. “There are no survivors,” he said.

Aero Santos, the tour company that owns the plane, said the craft carried five tourists, pilot and co-pilot. The nationality and identities of the tourists had yet not been determined.

The Nazca lines are huge etchings depicting imaginary figures, creatures and plants that were scratched on the surface of a coastal desert between 1,500 and 2,000 years ago. They are believed to have had ritual astronomical purposes and are recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.