A pilot was killed after two glider planes collided in mid-air over a remote area of upstate New York on Friday afternoon, with one aircraft crashing near Edinburg while the other landed safely at a nearby airport. The incident, which drew a heavy police, fire and forest ranger response, is now the subject of a federal investigation into how the two single-occupant gliders came to collide.

The crash happened just before 2.30pm, with wreckage from the downed Schempp-Hirth Ventus glider found near Wheeler Road just before 5pm; its pilot, not yet named, died at the scene. The other glider, a Schleicher AS24, sustained only minor damage landing at Plateau Sky Ranch Airport, and its unhurt pilot was described by the airport's owner as "shaken but okay" before he flew back up to search for the missing aircraft. The FAA and NTSB are investigating, with a preliminary report expected within 30 days and a final report in 12 to 24 months.