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NTSB issues 1st report on fatal mid-air collision in Chandler

Chandler Mid-Air collision
Posted at 5:30 PM, Oct 20, 2021
and last updated 2021-10-21 01:24:59-04

CHANDLER, AZ — The National Transportation Safety Board has issued its preliminary report on a fatal mid-air collision involving a helicopter and a small plane in Chandler earlier this month.

The flight instructor and student pilot aboard the helicopter both died in the Oct. 1 crash while the flight instructor and student pilot in the single-engine plane escaped injury.

The NTSB report says both aircraft were in parallel traffic patterns at Chandler Municipal Airport and getting ready to land.

The report says that shortly after the airplane made its final turn for the runway, the flight instructor radioed the tower and reported that "a loud bang" was heard and felt.

The flight instructor believed the plane might have struck birds.