Pan Am Jet Bound for L.A. Is Forced to Make Peru Stop
LIMA, Peru — A Pan Am jumbo jet carrying 105 people to Los Angeles was ordered to land in Lima on Monday for violating Peruvian airspace, and it was not allowed to take off until the airline paid a fine of about $10,000 eight hours later, officials said.
Passengers aboard Flight 210, which originated in Buenos Aires, said a Peruvian military jet escorted the Boeing 747 to its landing, but a Peruvian aviation official denied a military jet was involved.
Marco Antonio Gonzales, general manager of Peru’s airports, said the jet, sighted on radar over the Pacific Ocean within 200 miles of Peru’s coast, “was asked to descend so that it could complete the procedures in accordance with Peruvian laws for this type of offense.â€
Pan American officials in New York said the violation of Peru’s air space was caused by an erroneous flight plan given to the pilot.
Peru and the United States do not have an air traffic agreement, and a U.S. Embassy spokesman said the jetliner was ordered to land because it had not given Peruvian civil aviation authorities 48 hours’ notice of the overflight.
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