World
Three People Die Following Midair Collision Near Oregon Airport
Federal authorities investigate the fatal crash of two helicopters that scattered debris across a farm field and closed a nearby highway.
By Headlinne · Compiled from reporting by CNN, Hindu and BBC
Three individuals died on Thursday afternoon when two helicopters collided in midair near an airport in northwest Oregon, scattering wreckage across a farm field and forcing the closure of a nearby highway.
The crash occurred around 2:15 p.m. local time near McMinnville Municipal Airport, approximately 40 miles southwest of Portland.
Yamhill County Sheriff Sam Elliott identified the victims during a news conference as 22-year-old Maddie Aasbo, a flight instructor from Texas, and Tyler Sturdevant, 38, an Oregon pilot, along with an unnamed student pilot from the United Kingdom.
Aasbo and the student pilot were flying in a Robinson training helicopter operated by Jerry Trimble Helicopters, while Sturdevant was the sole occupant of an Airbus helicopter on a maintenance flight.
The incident prompted the Oregon Department of Transportation to close a one-mile section of Highway 233 without providing an immediate estimate for when the route would reopen.
Emergency personnel and investigators rushed to the private farm field where a red aircraft ended up crumpled in pieces and a green aircraft lay upside down.
Local resident Leo Rodriguez witnessed the disaster from his family vineyard and immediately contacted emergency services.
“All of a sudden I hear this big boom and this metal breaking, and I look up and just see these two helicopters just collided in mid-air,” said Rodriguez, according to a local network affiliate.
Jerry Trimble Helicopters released a statement addressing the disaster involving their instructional aircraft.
“Jerry Trimble Helicopters is deeply saddened to confirm that one of our aircraft was involved in an aviation incident this afternoon,” said the company in the statement, adding that they are cooperating fully with authorities.
Sheriff Elliott urged local residents to stay away from the crash zone to allow emergency crews and federal inspectors to work safely.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board launched an inquiry to determine the exact cause of the midair collision.
Federal investigators examined the debris field late Thursday night as the complex probe into the Oregon aviation accident continued.
Reporting from
- CNNNot politically framed
3 dead after 2 helicopters collide midair near Oregon airport, sheriff says
- The HinduNot politically framed
2 helicopters carrying 3 people collide in Oregon, shutting down highway
- BBCNot politically framed
Three dead after two helicopters collide midair near Oregon airport
How this article was made: Headlinne wrote it with AI from the 3 reports listed above. Direct quotes are checked word for word against those reports, every number appears in at least one of them, and no other sentence is copied from one. Photos are from those reports and credited to them. Each report’s page on Headlinne links to the outlet’s original.