Mid-air - USA

Rescuers seek pilot after planes collide near San Pablo Bay

Coast Guard rescue teams search the choppy waters of San Pablo Bay for a pilot whose plane collided with another aircraft. interactive A view from San Pablo Point looking at the Coast Guard search effort after a plane went into the bay. Two planes collided over San Pablo Bay Sunday April 27, 2014 causing a Cessna aircraft to break up and land in the bay.

 Two planes collided near San Pablo Bay on Sunday afternoon, with one crashing into the water and the second flying 40 minutes east to land safely in Ione in Amador County, Coast Guard officials said.

Rescue teams in boats and helicopters searched the water for the pilot of a 1965 Cessna 210 after the 4:05 p.m. crash and found only debris, said Coast Guard Lt. Jeannie Crump.

The other plane, a single-engine Hawker Sea Fury TMK 20, landed later at the Eagle's Nest Airport in Ione, according to Ian Gregor, public affairs manager for the Federal Aviation Administration.

The pilot and passenger - a husband and wife - in the Sea Fury were not injured, said Amador County Undersheriff Jim Wegner.


The two planes, which apparently both had flown out of Eagle's Nest Airport, were flying together and had been in Half Moon Bay earlier in the day, Wegner said.

The planes were at the Pacific Coast Dream Machines event in Half Moon Bay on Sunday. The Hawker, called Dreadnought, was reportedly one of the featured war birds at the event, an annual festival that included a variety of planes, motorcycles, cars and other tricked-out vehicles.

The vintage aircraft is a renowned racing plane, registered to Sanders Aircraft Inc., which restores classic airplanes and is operated by brothers Dennis and Brian Sanders. The Hawker is a top-level competitor in events such as the annual Reno Air Races.

The plane was rebuilt by their father, Frank Sanders, who died in a 1989 plane crash.

Cessna crashes into water
The planes collided about a mile north of the Brother Islands, near the entrance to San Pablo Bay.

Witnesses at Point San Pablo Yacht Harbor said the Cessna spiraled out of control and crashed into water after the collision.

Sailboats and the captain of the East Brother Light Station boat were the first to arrive at the scene of the crash, said harbormaster Roslynn Johnson, who called 911.

The boats found only small bits of debris in the water.

Four Coast Guard boats and a helicopter searched the choppy bay waters, along with five boats from local law enforcement agencies, including the Marin County Sheriff's Office and the Sausalito Police Department, as well as a local helicopter. Divers from the San Francisco Police Department also were on the scene.

The search continued well after dark.

Amador County firefighters and medics were dispatched to the Ione airport but were not needed. There was no immediate information on the plane or its occupants.

Korean War-era plane safe
The Hawker Sea Fury is a Korean War-era British fighter and ground attack plane. A woman answering the phone at Sanders Aircraft declined comment.

A 1965 Cessna 210, the same model as the other plane involved in the crash, is also registered to the company.

The National Transportation Safety Board and the FAA are investigating the incident.