A Peruvian air force helicopter crew Saturday arrived at the site of the crash of a plane that disappeared from radar just before landing Thursday, confirming there were no survivors among the 46 people onboard, Peruvian authorities said.
Heavy rains and low clouds had hampered the search that began Thursday, but the mission proceeded Saturday despite light rain. The crew spotted the wreckage in the mountains earlier that day.
The plane, which originated in the capital of Lima, crashed in the mountains, and the wreckage was strewn at 11,000 feet. The crash site is situated 10 miles from where the Fokker 28 was to have landed at the airport in Chachapoyas, Peruvian authorities said. The town is located some 400 miles north of Lima.
Relatives and friends of the people who were aboard the plane had been awaiting word of their loved ones at the airport in Chachapoyas and the one in Lima.
The plane was three minutes from its scheduled landing when the crew called the control tower at 8:43 am EST, authorities said, according to CNN. At the time, the pilot did not report anything was wrong, according to Interior Minister Gino Costa Santolalla.
The twin-engine plane had flown from Lima to the coastal city of Chiclayo and then departed on the half-hour scheduled flight to Chachapoyas, TANS (Transportes Aereos Nacionales de Selva) spokesman Jorge Belevan said. (Albawaba.com)
