British student pilot among three dead after two helicopters collide in Oregon

Flight instructor, 22, and pilot, 38, among other fatalities after mid-air collision occurs near small airport

Three people have been killed after two helicopters collided in mid-air near a small airport in Oregon on Thursday, authorities have confirmed.

The Yamhill county sheriff’s office said on Thursday that it received reports at about 2.10pm local time about an aircraft incident involving two helicopters that had crashed south-east of McMinnville, near McMinnville municipal airport.

“We located two crashed helicopters in a private farm field,” the Yamhill county sheriff, Sam Elliott, said at a news conference.

Elliott confirmed that the crash involved a 1995 Robinson R22 helicopter and a 2018 Airbus AS 350B3 helicopter. He said two people were onboard the Robinson and one onboard the Airbus.

“Unfortunately all three of those individuals are deceased,” he said.

The sheriff identified one of the victims onboard the Robinson helicopter as a student pilot from the United Kingdom, and said that local authorities were working with the British consulate and the FBI to notify the individual’s family.

The second occupant of the Robinson helicopter was identified as Maddie Aasbo, 22, a flight instructor from Texas.

The sole occupant of the Airbus helicopter was its pilot, 38-year-old Tyler Sturdevant from Newberg, Oregon.

Elliott said that the crash site had since been “turned over to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NSTB)”, which will investigate the collision.

In a statement on Thursday, the FAA confirmed that “a Robinson R22 helicopter and an Airbus H125 helicopter collided in mid-air near McMinnville Municipal Airport in Oregon around 2:15 pm local time on Thursday”.

“The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board will investigate,” the agency said, adding that the NTSB would take charge “of the investigation and will provide further updates”.

The NTSB also confirmed it was investigating the collision.

Meanwhile, local aviation school Jerry Trimble Helicopters, located in McMinnville, said in a statement shared on social media it was “deeply saddened to confirm that one of our aircraft was involved in an aviation incident this afternoon” near the McMinnville municipal airport.

“Our hearts and thoughts are with the individuals involved, their families and everyone affected by this event,” they said. The company added that it was “fully cooperating” with local and federal authorities “to secure the site and determine the cause of the incident”.