Three people died when two helicopters collided and crashed near McMinnville airport, southwest of Portland in the US state of Oregon, local officials said.

The aircraft came down on farmland. The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said they were a Robinson R22 and an Airbus H125.

One helicopter carried a 22-year-old flight instructor and a student pilot from the UK, whose name has not been released. The other carried a 38-year-old pilot.

One of the helicopters belongs to the flight school Jerry Trimble Helicopters. The school said it is helping officials find the cause of the crash. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will investigate.

Officials closed a stretch of Highway 233 and local roads near the crash site and asked people to stay away from the area. It is not clear when traffic will reopen.