Two small planes from Phoenix-area flight schools collided in midair and crashed in the Arizona desert north of the city on Friday, killing all four people aboard, according to officials.
No one on the ground was injured in the crash, which took place at approximately 10:30 a.m. local time some 15 miles west of Deer Valley Airport.
"We arrived on the scene and found four people deceased," said Captain Larry Nunez, a Phoenix Fire Department spokesman according to Reuters.
Nunez said one of the planes burst into flames.
Phoenix police were able to identify the aircraft as a Piper Archer III from the TransPac Aviation Academy, and a Cessna from the Westwind School of Aeronautics, both located in the metro Phoenix area according to Reuters
The identities of the two men aboard the Piper have been withheld pending notification of their families, authorities said.
The two people onboard the Cessna have yet to be identified as of press time.
A pilot who witnessed the collision reported the accident to authorities, said Ian Gregor, a Federal Aviation Administration spokesman. An investigation by the National Transportation Safety Boardand the FAA is currently "under way," Gregor said.
It typically takes "several months" for federal investigators to determine a probable cause for air crashes according to Gregor.
Several bystanders also reported seeing the Cessna and Piper collide, but the flight directions of the planes before the crash or other details have yet to be released according to the Associated Press.
"Both of them collided. We don't know how or what," said Phoenix Fire Department Capt. Larry Nunez shortly after the crash according to the Associated Press. "The skies are clear."
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