Jaime Roldós Aguilera

Jaime Roldós Aguilera
Official portrait, 1979
33rd President of Ecuador
In office
August 10, 1979  May 24, 1981
Vice PresidentOsvaldo Hurtado Larrea (1979–1981)
Preceded byAlfredo Poveda
Succeeded byOsvaldo Hurtado Larrea
Personal details
Born(1940-11-05)November 5, 1940
Guayaquil, Ecuador
DiedMay 24, 1981(1981-05-24) (aged 40)
Huairapungo Mountain, Celica Canton, Loja Province, Ecuador
Cause of deathPlane crash
Political partyConcentration of People's Forces
Spouse
(m. 1962; died 1981)
Children3
Alma materUniversity of Guayaquil

Jaime Roldós Aguilera (November 5, 1940 – May 24, 1981) was an Ecuadorian politician who was the 33rd President of Ecuador from August 10, 1979 until his death on May 24, 1981. In his short tenure, he became known for his firm stance on human rights, which led to clashes with other Latin American governments and poor relations with Ronald Reagan's United States administration.

On Sunday 24 May 1981, a plane in which he was travelling crashed, killing all passengers including Roldós and his wife. Controversy surrounds the circumstances of the crash, including the absence of a black box. Multiple investigations were carried out at the time, and in 2015-16, but no definite cause was determined.