MANILA: Two Philippine Air Force trainer aircraft crashed during a ‌training flight at an air base south of the capital Manila, killing four pilots, the military said on Saturday.

The aviation accident on ⁠Friday involved two SF-260 aircraft during a training flight at the Fernando Air Base in Batangas province, ‌the Philippine Air Force said in a statement

Local media has reported ‌the two planes collided in ‌midair

The aircraft crashed within ‌the grounds of ‌the air base but there were no other casualties

The ‌Air Force has temporarily grounded ⁠its fleet of SF-260 trainer planes pending an investigation into the cause of ⁠the accident

⁠In May, two pilots were killed when an SF-260 trainer aircraft crashed ⁠in a mountainous area in northern Philippines, while another SF-260 TP Marchetti crashed during a 2023 training flight, also killing two pilots

The ‌military used SF-260 aircraft during months of air strikes on southern Marawi City after militants loyal to Islamic State seized the area in 2017

Mid-air collision: Four Philippine Air Force pilots killed in training accident