World Leaders Who Died in Air Crashes

José Félix Estigarribia (1888–1940) was the 34th President of Paraguay. He and his wife died in a plane crash on a trip from Altos to his country residence in San Bernardino.

Ramon Magsaysay (1907–1957) was the 7th President of the Philippines. His airplane crashed on Mount Manunggal in the Cebu province.

The crash site of the Philippine presidential plane with Ramon Magsaysay onboard on March 17, 1957. The plane was on its way from Cebu City to Manila.

Abd al-Salam Arif (1921–1966) was the second president of Iraq. He died in a plane crash in southern Iraq, about 10 kilometers from Basra airport.

President René Barrientos Ortuño (1919–1969) was the 47th president of Bolivia. When flying into Arque Municipality, he lost his life in a helicopter crash.

General Omar Torrijos (1929 – 1981) was a military leader in Panama. Torrijos died at the age of 52 when his aircraft crashed at Cerro Marta, Panama.

The first post-independence president of Mozambique, Samora Machel (1933–1986). Machel died in office when his presidential aircraft crashed near the Mozambican-South African border.

Remains of the crashed plane at the Samora Machel Monument in South Africa.

Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq (1924–1988) was the sixth president of Pakistan. He died in a plane crash in Bahawalpur, in the country's Punjab province.

The second president of Rwanda, Juvénal Habyarimana (1937–1994). His private Falcon 50 jet was shot down near Kigali International Airport, killing him.

A Rwanda Patriotic Front rebel walks on May 23, 1994, by the plane wreckage in which Rwanda's late President Juvenal Habyarimana died on April 6.

The second president of Macedonia, Boris Trajkovski (1956–2004). Trajkovski died in a plane crash en route to an economic conference in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Parts of the Macedonian aircraft, which crashed into a heavily mined and remote area of southern Bosnia, were seen on Friday, Feb. 27, 2004. Search teams located the wreckage Friday morning after an almost 24-hour search in the mountains of southern Bosnia. All nine people on board, including Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski, were confirmed dead.

Polish President Lech Kaczynski (1949–2010) speaks to the press prior to boarding his plane at the military airport in Warsaw, Poland. The plane crashed while approaching Smolensk Air Base in Russia.

Parts of the Polish Tu-154M plane after it crashed with President Lech Kaczynski on board.

The eighth President of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi (1960–2024).

Crash site of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi’s helicopter.