Two dead when passenger plane crashes in mid-air with training plane over Nairobi National Park

Two people were killed in a mid-air crash between a passenger plane and a training plane over Nairobi National Park, local police said.

The student and trainer aboard the flight school plane died in the crash, police said, while those on the larger plane were uninjured.

The collision occurred at 10:05 local time (07:05 GMT), and the smaller training plane fell to the ground.

The larger plane, which had 44 people on board, including five crew members, was headed to the coastal resort town of Diani when the crew reported a loud bang shortly after takeoff from Wilson Airport and decided to turn back, the airline said. .

An investigation has been launched into the fatal incident and police are at the scene of the accident.

Images shared online appear to show the mangled remains of the plane, lying in an open grassy area with high-rise buildings visible in the distance.

A police report said the Dash 8 collided with a single-engine Cessna 172 operated by 99 Flying School with two people on board, who were in a training session.

“I can confirm that a student and a trainer (on the training aircraft) … died during the incident,” Nairobi County Police Commander Adamson Bungei said, without providing further details.

Local airline Safarilink, which operates the passenger plane, said those traveling on its plane were unharmed.