Nine missing after helicopter-plane collision in US

LOS ANGELES - Nine persons were reported missing and feared dead after a collision between a Coast Guard plane and a navy helicopter off California’s coast, the TV news network CNN reported Friday.

The late Thursday (local time) collision took place some 40 km from San Clemente Island off the Pacific coast from Los Angeles, with eyewitnesses reporting a ball of flame in the night skies.

Initial reports said the collision involved a C-130 plane with seven persons on board and an AH-1 helicopter with two. Coast Guard official Josh Nelson told CNN that the search for survivors was on with good weather conditions prevailing.