Plane crashes, a second belly lands in southern California
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Authorities say one person was killed after two small airplanes collided in midair over mountains in Southern California Monday, sending one crashing into a rocky ridge while the second was able to maneuver a belly-flop landing on a nearby golf course.
Rescuers searching through the wreckage of the plane that crashed found the body of a man believed to be the pilot. Los Angeles County sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said the pilot is believed to have been the only one on board.
Firefighters responding to a report of a small wildfire at about 2 p.m. spotted the aircraft debris, put out the fire and began a search for survivors, county fire Inspector Quvondo Johnson said.
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Three people on the plane that landed on a fairway had minor injuries. MyFoxLA.com reports all aboard that plane were taken to a local hospital.
Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Allen Kenitzer said a preliminary review of radar records showed the two flight-paths crossed just after 2 p.m.
The golf-course plane, a single-engine Cessna 172, was flying west at an altitude of 3,500 feet when the second plane, also a Cessna 172, approached from the east after leaving Santa Monica Airport for a test flight.
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The National Transportation Safety Board and FAA are investigating.
FAA records show the plane on the golf course was manufactured in 1980 and is registered to Ameriflyers of Florida, LLC. A message left at a number listed for the company was not immediately returned.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.