Four Aboard Sabreliner, Sole Occupant Of C172 Have Been Named

Authorities have released the names of the five people that were fatally injured when a Sabreliner Jet and a Cessna 172 collided in flight near Otay Mesa in southern California last weekend.

Television station KSWB reports that the pilot of the 172 was 55-year-old Michael Copeland of San Diego, according to the medical examiner's office. He was the only person onboard the single-engine aircraft. Copeland was the senior marketing manager for San Diego-based telecommunications company Qualcomm.

The four on board the Sabreliner were all employees of BAE Systems, which had leased the aircraft. They have been identified as John Kovach, Carlow Palos, and Jeff Percy, all of Mojave, CA. The fourth BAE contractor was identified as James Henry Hale of Adelanto, CA.

The Sabreliner was conducting a training mission for the U.S. Navy, according to the Associated Press. The Cessna pilot was reportedly conducting touch-and-go landings at Brown Field Municipal Airport Sunday morning when the accident occurred.

NTSB investigator Andrew Swick said that the pilots of both aircraft had communicated with the tower at Brown Field. Swick said that from a preliminary inspection, it appeared that the right wings of the airplanes had touched. The wreckage has been taken to a secure location in Arizona for detailed inspection.

FMI: www.ntsb.gov