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Plane Crash in Mexico Kills 19
A plane carrying 19 people, most of them American tourists, on a visit to Mayan ruins crashed in Yucatan state Wednesday, killing all aboard, authorities said.
Yucatan Gov. Patricio Patron said the majority of the victims were American, but he didn't provide an exact figure or any identifications.
The plane was flying at about 500 feet when it began turning onto a course requested by the air traffic controller, he added. ``It did not stop turning'' and suddenly plunged to the ground.
``We don't know what happened,'' Vargas said, though Mexican federal aviation officials were investigating.
Vargas said pilot Jose Luis Romero had 7,100 hours flying time and co-pilot Aurelio Perez Escalante more than 1,000.
The administrator of the Chichen Itza airport, Eduardo Alfaro de la Torre, told the government news agency Notimex that the pilot of the plane had not radioed for help before the accident.
The airline, based on Cozumel, flies in the Yucatan Peninsula, to Guatemala and Cuba. It specializes in chartered air tours.
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