Melton Mowbray: Glider pilot killed in mid-air crash
BBCA glider pilot has died following a mid-air collision over Leicestershire.
Police said they were called shortly before 15:00 BST on Thursday to reports a glider had crashed after being involved in a mid-air collision with a second glider over Melton Mowbray.
The aircraft was found in a field in Alderman Road with the pilot pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
The second glider landed safely nearby, with the pilot suffering minor injuries.
Police officers attended, along with East Midlands Ambulance Service and Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service.
Leicestershire Police said it was continuing to support the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB), which is leading the investigation into the crash.
The AAIB confirmed it had deployed a team to the site.
The glider in which the pilot was killed is understood to have taken off from The Gliding Centre at Husbands Bosworth Airfield, Leicestershire, which has this week been hosting the Hus Bos Challenge Cup competition.
Online flight data shows it took off shortly after 12:30 BST, making a number of turns over Melton Mowbray before crashing.
The Gliding Centre declined to comment.
Eyewitnesses reported seeing the gliders collide in mid-air.
David Leach, who lives on Marigold Crescent in the town, told the BBC: "I came out and we just looked up watching them circle right above us and then, all of a sudden, there was a mighty bang.
"I think the end of the wing of one clipped the back end of one glider, chopping his tail end off and one of them just came crashing down like a rocket.
"The noise was terrible. It was just so bad to see and it happened so quick."
His wife, Joy Leach, added: "It was horrific to see a plane crash like that. It was so close.
"When you're in your garden you don't expect that sort of thing to happen."
A resident of nearby village Burton Lazars, who has asked to remain anonymous, said she spoke to one of the pilots involved after the crash.
"He walked across the field where he landed and knocked on our door to use the phone," she said.
He was "very shaken and concerned about the other pilot", she added.
Anyone with information or footage of the incident is asked to contact police on 101, quoting incident 422 of 17 August.
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