Malayali among 2 student pilots killed in mid-air collision in Canada

Kochi: Two students of a flight training school were killed after their planes collided mid-air near Steinbach South Airport, about 60 kilometres south of Winnipeg. The deceased are Sreehari Sukesh (23), a resident of Statue New Road, Tripunithura, and his classmate Savanna May Royce (20), a Canadian citizen. Sreehari was the son of Central Bank official Sukesh and UST Global employee Deepa. 

According to reports, the collision occurred around 8.45 am on Tuesday. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) stated that both pilots—a man and a woman—were flying single-engine aircraft as part of a training exercise. Sreehari and Savanna were pronounced dead at the scene.

Both were students at Harv’s Air, a Manitoba-based flight training school with campuses in Steinbach and St. Andrews. Sreehari was preparing for his commercial certification, while Savanna was training for her private pilot license.

It is believed that the two pilots, who were flying solo, collided while attempting to land simultaneously. Both planes caught fire and crashed in a field about 400 metres from the airstrip.

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada has launched an investigation to determine the cause of the accident.