A BRITISH man has been arrested in Turkey after a mid-air paraglider collision left one person dead.
The 45-year-old, named locally as Thomas Aitken, was seized by Turkish cops following the mid-air smash.
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A Turkish man, Orkut Baysal, 30, was pronounced dead following the collision which saw both men plummet onto a hotel roof below.
The freak crash took place in windy conditions in the Fethiye district of Mugla province, on Turkey’s southern Turquoise Coast popular with tourists.
Baysal and fellow Turkish national paraglider, 45-year-old Andac Unsal, were reportedly performing a tandem flight on April 30 on the same day that Aitken was carrying out a solo jump.
But during the descent, they collided in midair and both skydivers crashed into a hotel roof, landing on the edge of a swimming pool.
The two parachutes reportedly became entangled in the collision before falling some 65 feet (20m) to the ground, according to Turkish media.
All three were rushed to the nearby Fethiye State Hospital for treatment, where Baysal sadly died from multiple injuries.
Aitken and Unsal were reportedly uninjured.
Police took Aitken into police custody pending the outcome of the investigation.
Authorities are investigating the cause of the collision and looking into any potential negligence on behalf of those involved.
The investigation is ongoing.
