Two killed in small-plane collision

LANCASTER, N.Y. – Two people, including a child, were killed when two small planes collided in western New York on Saturday at an event to introduce children to aviation, officials said.

The crash killed the pilot of one plane and a boy who was a passenger, Lancaster police Chief Gerald Gill told the Buffalo News. Their names were not immediately released.

The Federal Aviation Authority said the planes collided about 6 miles east-southeast of Buffalo-Lancaster Regional Airport at about 10:40 a.m.

The midair collision involved a Cessna 172 and a SeaRey amateur-built aircraft, the FAA said. Authorities said the SeaRey landed safely in a field in Alden but the Cessna crashed in Lancaster.

The Experimental Aircraft Association told the newspaper that both planes were flying as part of an event called the Young Eagles rally.

Dick Knapinski, a spokesman for the Oshkosh, Wisconsin-based group, said the Young Eagles rallies are intended to introduce young people to aviation.