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Three people have died after two helicopters collided midair near a small airport in Oregon, officials said.
The collision involving a Robinson R22 and an Airbus helicopter occurred near McMinnville Municipal Airport on Thursday afternoon. Both aircraft crashed in a field adjacent to a highway, the sheriff’s office said.
Authorities identified the victims as a 22-year-old flight instructor from Texas and a student pilot from the United Kingdom, who were aboard one of the helicopters. The sole occupant of the other aircraft – a 38-year-old from Oregon – was also killed.
It was not immediately clear what caused the crash.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) responded to the scene and are leading the ongoing investigation.
The flight instructor on the Robinson R22 was identified Maddie Aasbo.
The student pilot from the UK was identified on Friday as 31-year-old Christopher James Joughin.
Authorities did not initially name Joughin on Thursday as they had not notified his family. The family was said to be in Zimbabwe, according to the Statesman Journal., external
The sole occupant of the Airbus was identified as Tyler Delane Sturdevant, 38, of Newberg, Oregon.
The Airbus was on a post-maintenance check flight and the Robinson R22 was on a flying lesson with two aboard, the NTSB said on Friday.
Grant Mills, an investigator with the NTSB, said that his agency and the FAA are still investigating the crash.
He was unable to provide a cause or comment on weather conditions at the time of the crash, but confirmed that it occurred midair.
He added that witnesses reported the collision occurred about 500ft (152.4m) off the ground about a mile east of the airport.
Mills noted that the McMinnville Airport does not have an air traffic control tower, which means pilots need to self-report their whereabouts and intentions to take off and land over a shared frequency.
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