Feds Probe Frederick Midair Crash That Killed 3

FREDERICK, Md. (AP) — Federal investigators were at the scene Friday of a collision between an airplane and a helicopter near a Maryland airport that killed three men but spared two others in the plane, who deployed a parachute to slow the aircraft’s descent.

The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation into what caused the Cirrus SR22 plane and a Robinson R44 helicopter to collide Thursday in the air.

Investigators were combing the scene and planned to talk with survivors and air traffic controllers.

The plane went down in a line of trees east of downtown Frederick, while the helicopter crashed a tenth of a mile south of the plane, between two storage units, Maryland State Police spokesman Greg Shipley said.

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