Two pilots dead after possible mid-air crash in Queensland

Two pilots have died in a “tragic” accident, with police investigating whether a mid-air crash was the reason behind the fatalities.

Two men have died after a light aircraft crash in Queensland, which may have involved a mid-air collision.

Police, paramedics and firefighters were all called to the scene at Kybong, south of Gympie, after the event at 2:50pm.

There were grave concerns for the safety of two people after the mid-air crash. Picture: Channel 7

Police confirmed the two male pilots of two separate aircraft had died following the crash, which happened at a paddock near Gympie Airport.

“We will be looking into the possibility that there was a collision meet here, but it’s very early days, and we’re really not sure,” Gympie patrol group inspector Brad Inskip said.

A single occupant glider and another ultralight aircraft were involved in the crash, according to police.

First responders were met with a “graphic scene” according to Mr Inskip.

A glider and another light aircraft were involved in the crash. Picture: ABC

“There’s no doubt about it, this is a tragic incident … it’s a terrible scene, a terrible incident, terrible for the family and obviously for those involved.”

Police were still trying to identify the deceased men, however, they said the glider had left form a nearby local gliding club.

Debris from the two planes was scattered across 200m of the paddock. Picture: Channel 7

“It’s a small, little regional gliding club; they all know each other,” Mr Inskip said.

“So this is going to hit the community very hard, especially those clubs involved, for sure.

Police have set up two crime scenes across the paddock, “approximately 200 metres apart”.

“There is evidence to suggest that [a mid-flight collision] has occurred, but we’re not ruling anything out at this stage,” Mr Inskip said.

“We were sitting on the veranda having a cuppa, and we heard a big bang,” a witness told 7 NEWS.

“We thought that didn’t sound like a gunshot, and we looked up and saw white bits of plane falling out of the sky.”