Two general aviation Vans RV-4 aircraft collided in mid-air near Haller Airpark (7FL4).
The Federal Aviation Administration says the crash happened at the Haller Airpark in Green Cove Springs at around 11:36 a.m.
One aircraft, an experimental amateur-built Van’s RV-4, built by John G. Dougherty, came down in a wooded area, killing the pilot. The other aircraft, Also Van’s RV-4, came down in a field. The pilot was in serious condition.
One pilot, David Alston Dollarhide, was reportedly attempting to take off from the airpark but banked to one side and collided with another plane already in the air piloted by 74-year-old Robert Henrey Woolley, FHP says.
One crashed in an open field and that pilot, David Dollarhide of Green Cove Springs, was hospitalized. The second plane crashed into trees not far away. That pilot, 74-year-old Robert Woolley, also of Green Cove Springs, was killed.
Update: One pilot was killed and another seriously injured after 2 small planes collided today in Clay County. https://t.co/EXlChYvBrN pic.twitter.com/Upja490WY5
— WJCT News (@WJCTNews) May 29, 2019
Dollarhide’s plane was found about one mile south of the fairgrounds and Woolley’s plane was later found about three miles southwest of the fairgrounds.
Several law enforcement agencies were called to the scene to canvass and locate the planes.
The National Transportation Safety Board, which is sending a team from Orlando to investigate, identified both aircraft as Vans RV-4s. They are light homebuilt aircraft that seat two.
NTSB investigating May 29 midair collision of two, Vans RV-4 planes in Green Cove Springs, FL.
— NTSB Newsroom (@NTSB_Newsroom) May 29, 2019
FHP is leading the investigation alongside the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board.
Clay County Plane Crash:
Green Cove Springs/Penney Farms area.
Two planes collided mid-air near Haller Airpark. Both planes brought down. One pilot deceased on scene. Second pilot transported to OPMC with non life threatening injuries. pic.twitter.com/wOFKnUphZV— FHP Jacksonville (@FHPJacksonville) May 29, 2019
The FAA released the following statement:
Two general aviation aircraft collided while flying in the traffic pattern at the Haller Airpark, Green Cove Springs, FL, today at 11:36 a.m. One aircraft is an RV-4 and it was located at a local fairground. The second aircraft was located in a wooded area near the airpark. The second aircraft type has not been determined. The FAA will investigate and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will determine the cause of the accident.
The full news conference can be viewed below.
