Four dead after Cessna 172 Skyhawk II crashes in Chile

TIRúA, Chile, Jan. 9 (UPI) -- Four people died near the Lequecahue Aerodrome near Chile's town of Tirúa in the Bío Bío region after a single-propeller Cessna 172 Skyhawk II plane crashed, local officials said.

The plane was traveling inland from Chile's offshore Mocha Island to Tirúa, which is a 25-minute flight. La Nación identified the victims, who were residents of the island, as pilot Boris Schultz Faundez, and his friends Franklin Mota, Leticia Guzmán Pincheira and Gilberto Varela Guzmán.

Officials have launched an investigation. Preliminary reports said the plane crashed after failed attempts to land.