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Updated: 1 dead as plane crashes, another belly lands in LA County
A single-engine Cessna lands at Westlake Golf Course on Monday, April 29, 2013.
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NBC Los Angeles
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Updated 8:47 p.m.: Authorities say one person has died after a midair collision over Southern California that sent one plane crashing into a ridge and forced another plane to land on a golf course, the Associated Press reported.
Los Angeles County sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore told the AP that a body believed to be the only occupant of the plane that crashed was found in the wreckage about five hours after the collision on Monday.
Federal officials say the Cessna 172 was had taken off from Santa Monica Airport to test its engine when it made contact with the other plane and crashed into mountainous terrain in Calabasas, causing a small wildfire that was put out quickly.
The other plane did a belly-flop landing on the fairway of Westlake Golf Course. The three people aboard walked away with minor injuries.
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Previously: A search is underway for possible victims of a small plane crash in Calabasas. The crash happened in a remote area along Mulholland Highway near Malibu Creek State Park around 2 p.m. Monday afternoon.
Los Angeles County Fire Inspector Quvondo Johnson said firefighters had originally responded to a half-acre brush fire when they found the plane.
"It was in a very remote area, so we had some challenges getting to that brush fire. We had our helicopters that were making water drops, and they were the first to report that it might be possible debris on the hillside. We did have crews that hiked up there. And once they got there, they did make a determination that there was debris from a plane."
No word yet how many people were on board that plane — or if there are any fatalities.
Johnson added that around the same time another small aircraft made an emergency landing on a golf course in nearby Westlake Village.
"There was no fire in that plane. There were three persons that were on board that walked away from that plane. All three had minor injuries."
Investigators are still trying to determine whether the two incidents are related.
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This story has been updated.
Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the connection between the debris and the plane that landed in Westlake Village.
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