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The Peruvian officers mistakenly thought that the plane, flying from the Colombian border towards the city of Iquitos, 600 miles northeast of Lima, was ferrying drug-traffickers. Two of the passengers, an American missionary from the Association of Baptists for World Evangelism (ABWE), Veronica "Roni" Bowers, and her 7-month-old daughter, Charity, were killed instantly when bullets tore through the fuselage.

"We are extremely concerned about this incident, and profoundly lament the loss of human life. We demand that this incident be investigated until it is fully clarified," says Victor Arroya, executive director of the National Evangelical Council of Peru. "The public has a right to know what really happened."

Kevin Donaldson, pilot of the Cessna 185 floatplane, was able to make an emergency landing in the Amazon River, despite gunshot wounds to both legs. Veronica's husband, Jim Bowers and their six-year-old son, Cory, were unharmed.

"We were deeply shocked, scandalized," said Anglican Bishop William Godfrey, of Lima. "Who makes one group lord over someone else's life? To shoot down a plane is to condemn its occupants to death without giving them the benefit of the doubt."

The bishop added that it was essential that every effort be made to keep anything similar from happening in the future.

"It was a terrible mistake that must never be repeated," said Amparo Huaman, director of Peru Solidarity Forum, a U.S.-funded Catholic organization in Lima which provides extensive support to Catholic missionaries. "It is the duty of the Peruvian authorities to carry out an exhaustive investigation in order to discover what really happened."

There are conflicting reports about who is to blame. A U.S. surveillance plane, operated by three Central Intelligence Agency contract employees, was providing routine support last Friday morning and alerted the Peruvian air force to the presence of the Cessna, which they believed to be flying without a flight plan. The Baptist floatplane was flying over a jungle area rife with drug smugglers who frequently use clandestine landing strips and Amazon tributaries to pick up coca paste shipments.

A Peruvian A-37B jet went into immediate action. According to a Peruvian air force statement, the intercepting plane made every effort to communicate with the Cessna, using internationally recognized signals. As there was no response, it opened fire.

U.S. officials, however, have reportedly said they voiced objections and thought the Peruvians moved too fast. The Peruvian air force has promised to carry out an exhaustive investigation and said it "deeply regretted" the loss of life.

The pilot, Kevin Donaldson, who has been flying in the Iquitos area for more than a decade, said he had filed a flight plan, which was posted by the Baptist missionary group on a web page. Moreover, the plane's registration was clearly visible on the wing and tail, and the plane was known in the area. Donaldson said the fighter made no attempt at contact, and he received no response from the tower.

"It was an absurd, excessive use of force," said Bishop Godfrey. "If it had happened on the ground you would stop the vehicle, ask questions. You would not attack with heavy machinery."

Huaman added: "It is hard to believe that the flight verification is so superficial and puts people's lives at risk. There must be another way to combat drug trafficking."

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April (Web-only) 2001, Vol. 45