On August 24, 2008, an Aéreo Ruta Maya

Cessna Caravan 208 The Cessna 208 Caravan is a utility aircraft produced by Cessna. The project was commenced on November 20, 1981, and the prototype first flew on December 9, 1982. The production model was certified by the Federal Aviation Administration, FAA ...

carrying 10

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

aid workers, two

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

n aid agency representatives, pilot and copilot en route from

La Aurora International Airport La Aurora International Airport (, ) serves Guatemala City, Guatemala. It is located south of Guatemala City's center and from Antigua Guatemala. It is administered by the General Directorate of Civil Aeronautics (Guatemala), General Directora ...

Guatemala City Guatemala City (, also known colloquially by the nickname Guate), is the Capital city, national capital and largest city of the Guatemala, Republic of Guatemala. It is also the Municipalities of Guatemala, municipal capital of the Guatemala Depa ...

El Estor El Estor is a town and a municipality in the Izabal department of Guatemala. As of the 2018 census, the town's population was 20,489. The population of El Estor consists largely of Qʼeqchiʼ speaking indigenous people . History Before roads ...

, crashed 45 minutes after takeoff. The crash killed all occupants but three aid workers. One of the survivors was

Dan Liljenquist Daniel R. Liljenquist (born July 10, 1974) is an American businessman and politician who served one term in the Utah State Senate. Early life and education Born in Nashville to Dr. John E. Liljenquist and Colleen Redford Liljenquist, he spent ...

, an American businessman and politician. The aircraft went down in a field 60 miles east of Guatemala City after the pilot reported an

engine failure A turbine engine failure occurs when a Gas turbine, gas turbine engine unexpectedly stops producing Power (physics), power due to a malfunction other than fuel exhaustion. It often applies for aircraft, but other turbine engines can also fail, ...

and was attempting an emergency landing. The aid workers were members of Choice Humanitarian, a

West Jordan, Utah West Jordan is a city in Salt Lake County, Utah, United States. It is a suburb of Salt Lake City. According to the 2020 Census, the city had a population of 116,961, placing it as the third most populous in the state. The city occupies the sou ...

based humanitarian group on their way to the village of Sepamac.

References

* J. Lara, E. Paxtor, G. Palencia
"Mueren 10 en accidente aéreo"
(in Spanish) 25 August 2008 * Associated Pres
"5 Americans Die In Guatemala Plane Crash"
CBSNews 25 August 2008

CNN 25 August 2008
"Americans die in Guatemala crash"
BBCNews 25 August 2008 * Associated Pres

NEWYorkTimes

External links

Aéreo Ruta Maya S.A.
(official site) {{DEFAULTSORT:Aereo Ruta Maya Crash, 2008 Accidents and incidents by airline of South America Aero Ruta Maya crash Aviation accidents and incidents in Guatemala Aero Ruta Maya crash Accidents and incidents involving the Cessna 208 Caravan August 2008 in North America