Local News
Small Aircraft Crashes Near Lincoln Street and 68th Avenue in Mecca
MECCA, Calif. — Emergency crews responded to a report of a small aircraft crash in Mecca, Riverside County, after the aircraft went down near the intersection of Lincoln Street and 68th Avenue.
According to preliminary emergency information, the small aircraft came down off the roadway in the area of the intersection.
Emergency medical personnel responded to assess one occupant, who had already exited the aircraft. The occupant was reportedly uninjured.
Officials reported no smoke or fire at the scene, and there were no immediate indications of additional injuries.
The circumstances surrounding the aircraft crash, including what caused the aircraft to go down, were not immediately available.
Authorities are expected to investigate the incident and determine the circumstances leading up to the crash.
Further information may be released as the response and investigation continue.
Local News
Maddie Aasbo and Tyler Sturdevant Among Three Killed in Helicopter Collision Near McMinnville
MCMINNVILLE, Ore. — Three people were killed Thursday afternoon, October 29, 2026, after two helicopters collided in midair and crashed into a field southeast of McMinnville, Oregon, authorities said.
The fatal collision was reported at approximately 2:10 p.m. near the intersection of Southeast Amity-Dayton Highway (Highway 233) and Southeast Cruickshank Road, according to the Yamhill County Sheriff’s Office.
Emergency responders arriving at the scene discovered two helicopters that had crashed in a field adjacent to Highway 233. All three people aboard the aircraft were pronounced dead.
Authorities identified the victims as Maddie Aasbo, 22, of Texas; Tyler Delane Sturdevant, 38, of Newberg, Oregon; and a student pilot from the United Kingdom whose name has not yet been released.
Aasbo was a flight instructor and was aboard a 1995 Robinson R22 helicopter with the student pilot. The student’s identity is being withheld pending notification of next of kin.
Sturdevant was the sole occupant of a 2018 Airbus AS350B3 helicopter, authorities said.
The two aircraft were found in the same field near Highway 233 after the reported midair collision. Officials confirmed that two people had been aboard the Robinson R22 and one person had been aboard the Airbus AS350B3.
Deputies from the Yamhill County Sheriff’s Office, officers from the McMinnville Police Department and troopers from the Oregon State Police’s McMinnville Area Command responded to the scene after witnesses reported the crash to the Yamhill Communications Agency.
The response included personnel from multiple law enforcement and emergency services agencies, who located the wreckage and confirmed the deaths of all three occupants.
The circumstances leading up to the collision have not yet been established publicly.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) responded to the scene and are leading the investigation into the deadly helicopter collision.
Investigators are expected to examine the wreckage and gather evidence to help determine what happened before the two aircraft collided. The cause of the crash has not been announced, and further details may emerge as the investigation continues.
No additional information about the circumstances of the flight or the events immediately preceding the collision was included in the initial report.
The Yamhill County Sheriff’s Office expressed condolences to the families and friends of Aasbo and Sturdevant following the tragedy.
The deaths of the three occupants mark a devastating loss for their loved ones as investigators work to establish the circumstances surrounding the crash.
This remains an ongoing investigation. Further information, including the student pilot’s identity and the cause of the collision, may be released as it becomes available.