ZCZC
BFF-17
AUSTRALIA-ACCIDENT-AVIATION
Mid-air plane collision kills four in Australia
MELBOURNE, Feb 19, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – Four people were killed in a mid-air
collision between two light planes in Australia on Wednesday, scattering
debris across a rural area north of Melbourne.
Police said the two twin-engined aircraft were each carrying a pilot and a
passenger when they crashed around 4,000 feet (1,200) above the town of
Mangalore.
Images from the crash scene on the ground showed twisted metal and chunks
of fuselage scattered in a field and among trees.
Police said both planes were flying legally in the area but investigations
were ongoing.
“We’re not sure why both aircraft were exactly on the same trajectory or
why they were in that area but unfortunately they have collided mid-air,”
Police Inspector Peter Koger said.
One aircraft had just taken off from the nearby airfield but the other
plane’s origin was still unclear, he added.
BSS/AFP/MSY/1101 hrs