1987 Alianza Lima Air Disaster - Aftermath

Aftermath

The day after the accident, the entire country mourned the loss. Radio and television reporters spread the news of the disaster, and people flocked to the beaches of Ventanilla and Alianza's Alejandro Villanueva Stadium in the La Victoria district of Lima. Over the next several days, the corpses were recovered from the sea. People attended dramatic mourning masses, attended football matches played in honor of the fallen players, and participated in pilgrimages that started in the various barrios the players had hailed from, stopped at the club's stadium, and ended at Lima's General Cemetery. The team was said to have gone “de La Victoria a la gloria” (from Victory to glory) a pun on the team's home district. President Alan García, Cardinal Juan Landázuri Ricketts, and several state ministers attended various public grievances, with many declaring themselves to have been Aliancistas since childhood. The municipal government of La Victoria declared three days of mourning in the district, and ordered its decoration in Alianza's blue and white colors. Bobby Charlton publicly announced his grief, having himself survived the Munich air disaster of 1958, which claimed the lives of many of Manchester United's "Busby Babes". Uruguayan club Peñarol wore black mourning bands at the Intercontinental Cup final, in a showing of solidarity with their fallen counterparts. Peruvian footballer Teófilo Cubillas, who had retired the previous year, offered his services as a player to Alianza, and wore the jersey three weeks later when the championship resumed.

Shots were fired during encounters between the families of the deceased and the guards at the naval base where they appeared requesting news and explanations in the days after the accident. The Peruvian Navy sealed itself, making no statements regarding its role in the disaster. The bodies of Luis Escobar, Francisco Bustamante, Alfredo Tomasini, Gino Peña and William León were never recovered. There were rumors that player Tomasini had spent his last moments and spoken with the pilot, Villar, the only survivor; his family wished to hire a boat to aid in the search and recovery efforts, but the Navy did not allow it, closing off the accident area to all civilian traffic. In the midst of the difficult moment the country was experiencing due to the activities of the Sendero Luminoso terrorist group, the Navy's behavior led to rampant suspicion, which in turn brewed conspiracy theories.

The club members who died represented most of Alianza's footballing strength at the time; the group of players were known collectively as Los Potrillos del '87 ("The Ponies of 1987"). Among the deceased was youth star Luis Escobar, the sensation of that year's tournament, who had debuted with the main team at age 14; he died at age 18. Players Francisco Bustamante and José Casanova, both in their twenties, played for the national team. Also in their early twenties, forward Alfredo Tomasini, and defenders Daniel Reyes and Tomas Farfán, lost their lives in the accident. Marcos Calderón, widely considered to be one of Peru's best coaches of all time, lost his life, as did José "el Caico" Gonzáles Ganoza, Alianza's starting keeper of 14 years. Alianza's squad was considered by the Peruvian sporting press to represent a sweeping renovation of Peruvian football. Alianza would continue to suffer during the next two decades, almost facing relegation in the year after the disaster; the team did not win a title until 1997, finally ending an 18-season drought prolonged by the loss of their star team.