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Pilot killed during air show collision in Portugal: Crash captured on camera
The PAF, responsible for the event held at an air base in Beja, confirmed that the incident occurred during a performance by the YAK STARS aerobatic patrol.
One pilot was killed and another pilot injured when two small planes collided midair during an air show in Portugal on Sunday, news agency AFP reported, citing the Portuguese Air Force (PAF).
“The air force regrets to announce that at 4:05 pm (1505 GMT), at the Beja Air Show, two planes were the victim of an accident during an aerial demonstration involving six aircraft,” the PAF statement said, as reported by the news agency.
The pilot who died in the accident was a Spanish national. An air force spokeswoman, cited by AFP, said that the deceased was the pilot of one of the aircraft involved in the collision. Additionally, a pilot of Portuguese nationality sustained minor injuries and received immediate medical attention before being transported to Beja Hospital, as per the air force's statement.
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The PAF, responsible for the event held at an air base in Beja, located 180 km (110 miles) south of Lisbon, confirmed that the incident occurred during a performance by the YAK STARS aerobatic patrol. The aircraft involved in the collision was specified as a Yakovlev Yak-52, a Soviet-designed aerobatic training model.
Crash caught on camera
AFP reported that a video captured by a spectator and posted on social media depicted the formation of six planes in flight. One plane ascends, seemingly making contact with another before crashing to the ground in a cloud of smoke. The video was shared by @fl360aero, an aviation news handle on X.
Portugal President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said, “It was meant to be a moment of leisure and shared enjoyment. It turned into a moment of pain.”
The country's Defence Minister, Nuno Melo, described it as a “tragic accident” and informed reporters that an investigation would be launched “to determine the exact cause” of the collision.
The Air Force said that one of the planes involved in the accident crashed outside the airbase's perimeter, while the second managed to land safely on the airport tarmac. The Air Force stated that no spectators were harmed.
According to the Beja Air Show's website, the "Yak Stars" participated alongside approximately 30 other European aerobatic groups, with organisers touting them as the largest civil aerobatics group in southern Europe.
Following the incident, the PAF called off Portugal's largest air festival, the Beja AirShow. The air force announced that the event's organisers at Beja airport had suspended the two-day affair, which commenced on Saturday. They extended their “deepest condolences” to the deceased pilot's family.
