Eyewitness Report Comes From A Third Aircraft

ANN has just a few solid details at this writing, but a search is underway over the Pacific Ocean for the victims of a midair collision involving two aircraft. Both are reported to have impacted at sea, some five miles South of Long Beach harbor. Over 12 hours of searching have revealed no survivors and little possibility for finding any.

FAA sources state that the collision occurred at 1745 local time, and that the only witness is the pilot of a nearby aircraft that was not involved in the accident. Search crews have found aircraft debris, including portions of a landing gear assembly.

Jackawa Jackson, the Long Beach Fire Department spokesperson stated that, "We know from the landing gear that at least one of them was a small plane... We’ve got seagoing companies including two large fire boats and a Coast Guard vessel searching a fairly large area right now."

No aircraft ID's have been confirmed, as yet, but current media reports suggest that one aircraft Is a Long Beach-based Cessna 172 from LGB's Aero Aviation, and that the other may be a Cessna 310. One of the aircraft has also been reported to have been engaged in an instructional flight.

FMI: www.ntsb.org