Eurocopter EC130 T2 crash near Lake Atitlán, near Panajachel, Solola, Guatemala

The helicopter left Guatemala City La Aurora at 12:11 for the helipad at Hotel Atitlan on the north shore of Lake Atitlan, carrying businesspeople from the capital to a training event at the hotel. It had already flown twice to Antigua Guatemala and back that morning. Tracking data shows it lost altitude suddenly near finca San Buenaventura, and its last recorded position was over the lake at about 5,150 feet, some eighteen minutes after departure. The accident happened at about 12:45, off a private hotel beach. Five of the seven on board were rescued uninjured. The pilot, Jorge Rodolfo Maldonado, and a passenger, Pablo Jose Polanco Agustin, were trapped in the fuselage and both were later recovered deceased. Police first put the wreck at 200 to 300 metres, beyond the hundred metre limit of the rescue teams' equipment, but the Bomberos Voluntarios water rescue unit located the fuselage with an underwater drone at 36 metres, in front of the public beach at Panajachel, well within diving range. Four divers worked the site. The cause is under investigation and no finding has been published. Coordinates are approximate to the bay.