United News of Bangladesh

Four pilots were killed when two Philippine air force aircraft collided during a training flight and crashed at an air base south of Manila, officials said Saturday. The two SF-260 aircraft collided at low altitude on Friday afternoon before crashing at Fernando Air Base in Lipa City, in the coastal province of Batangas. No one on the ground was injured, officials said. The air force described the incident as an accidental crash but did not provide further details. Two Philippine officials familiar with the incident said the aircraft collided midair. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to discuss the matter. A witness told The Associated Press that one of the two-seater planes crashed near military personnel barracks inside the air base. The air force has temporarily grounded its remaining SF-260 aircraft, which were acquired from Italy, pending an investigation. It did not disclose how many of the planes remain in service. The crash deals a blow to the Philippines' underfunded military, which has long faced difficulties modernising its air force, navy and army because of financial constraints. The military has also been dealing with decades-long communist and Muslim insurgencies, alongside increasingly tense territorial disputes with Beijing in the South China Sea.