Coast Guard Plane and Marine Helicopter Collide off California

In more bad news for the U.S. military, a mid-air collision off the California coast now has rescuers scrambling in a desperate search for possible survivors. The crash occurred at approximately 7PM on Thursday evening about 15 miles east of San Clemente Island, which is about 70 miles off the coast of San Diego. The C-130 Coast Guard plane that was involved in the crash was in the midst of a search and rescue mission at the time, while the AH-W Super Cobra Marine helicopter was on a training mission at the time.

A Coast Guard pilot reported seeing a fireball near the crash site and there were also reports of C-130 debris in the water. The weather was clear and the seas were calm, which would theoretically help the search and rescue teams. At this point, however, there is no word of any survivors or if any of the aircraft have been recovered.

A similar type of marine helicopter was involved in a mid-air collision in Southern Afghanistan earlier this week, which killed at least four people and injured two others. It has been reported that the Coast Guard pilots involved in the crash would have had access to survival gear that would keep them alive in the water, but one would have to reason that a mid-air collision would not allow for any time to don such gear.

Given the fact that the planes collided in flight, the chances of survival would appear to be slim for all involved.