Dirac Aviation Flight 31 departed Nice for a regular flight without passengers to Tarbes. As the Merlin IV approached Tarbes, the crew received descent instructions at 15:55 the flight was cleared to descent to 2600 ft by Pau Approach and three minutes later the flight contacted Tarbes Approach Control. At that the same time a SOCATA TB-10 was flying near Tarbes. The airplane was on a navigational training flight from Pau to Tarbes. The airplane had overflown Tarbes and was cleared for a circuit in preparation for a runway 02 approach. They left the Aerodrome Traffic Zone (ATZ) at 16:00. A few minutes later they entered the ATZ again, but did not establish radio contact with the controller. At 16:04 both aircraft collided in midair. The TB-10 crashed and the Merlin crew were able to carry out a forced landing on one engine, with a destroyed windscreen and just one landing gear leg extended. The Merlin touched down near the runway and slid for 325 m before coming to rest. PROBABLE CAUSES (translated from French): “The in-flight collision of the two aircraft resulted from the entry of TB 10 F-GEVD into the ATZ of Tarbes without radio contact at the same time and altitude as the Merlin F-GERP, despite the traffic information provided to it. In addition, the visual surveillance that both crews were supposed to provide did not allow them to detect the other aircraft.”