Three dead as South Korean air force planes collide

Two South Korean air force planes collided in mid-air during training on Friday, killing three people and injuring one, officials said.

The two KT-1 trainer aircraft crashed into a mountain in the south-eastern city of Sacheon after colliding, emergency officials said.

Three people were found dead and one was injured, the officials said.

They said three helicopters, 20 vehicles and dozens of emergency workers were sent to the scene.

The air force confirmed the collision, but a statement said they were trying to confirm the reported casualties and whether pilots on the aircraft tried to eject to safety.

It said the KT-1 aircraft is a two-seat plane.

Friday’s incident came months after a South Korean air force pilot died in January after his F-5E fighter jet crashed into a mountain in the city of Hwaseong, south of the capital, Seoul.

South Korea has about 560,000 troops under a conscription system meant to help deter potential aggression from North Korea, which has about 1.3 million soldiers, one of the largest militaries in the world.

About 28,500 American troops are stationed in South Korea, a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War that ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty.