A Spanish pilot died this Sunday afternoon in Beja (Portugal), during the celebration of an air festival, due to the collision that occurred in mid-flight between two of the planes participating in the exhibition. The videos recorded by some attendees show the moment of the crash, after which the aircraft occupied by the victim plummets to the ground and explodes, while the other manages to make an emergency landing. The accident also caused minor injuries to a 37-year-old Portuguese pilot who was on the other crashed plane.
According to the newspaper Vigo Lighthouse, the deceased is Manuel Rey Cordeiro, a Vueling commercial pilot who belonged to the Iberian acrobatic patrol Yakstars. Manuel Rey Cordeiro, who was born in Vigo in 1962, lived in Sigüeiro, a town near the Rosalía de Castro airport, in Santiago de Compostela. He had more than 18,000 flight hours and several awards in both national and international competitions.
His patrol was participating in the Beja AirShow festival with several Yaklovev Yak-52 aircraft, including the two that were damaged. The Yakstars is considered one of the most experienced civil aviation aerobatic groups and is made up of Portuguese and Spanish pilots.
The collision occurred shortly after 4:00 p.m. next to air base number 11 for reasons still unknown. The Portuguese Minister of Defense, Nuno Melo, regretted the death of the pilot and explained that the accident will be investigated by two different entities to try to “understand the cause and determine responsibilities.” Also the Prime Minister of Portugal, Luís Montenegro, showed his “great dismay” at what happened.
The Beja air base already recorded another collision in 1996 during an aerial demonstration. On that occasion there were no fatalities after the collision of the English Hawk T-1 aircraft of the Royal Air Force and an F-16B of the Portuguese Air Force.
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