Skydiving Plane Crash Near Butler, Missouri Kills 12

Eleven skydivers and the pilot of a Pacific Aerospace P750 died when the aircraft crashed moments after departing Butler Memorial Airport in Missouri on Sunday, local authorities said. Emergency responders arrived after a call at about 11:30 a.m., finding the wreckage and all twelve occupants dead near a field adjacent to the runway, according to Sgt. Justin Ewing of the Missouri Highway Patrol.

The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed the crash occurred around 11:35 a.m. while the plane was climbing to roughly 100 feet. The aircraft was not under air traffic control at the time. Dennis Jacobs, Butler's emergency management director, said weather was sunny and unlikely to have contributed, noting that a thunderstorm and rain had passed the previous night.

Jacobs identified Skydive Kansas City as the operator and described the pilot's apparent attempt to gain altitude before turning left, possibly to reach a flat roadway, after which the plane stalled and impacted the ground within the airport perimeter. No parachutes could have been deployed at that low altitude.

Butler Mayor Jim Henry expressed condolences, calling the incident a tragic event for the community. The cause of the crash remains under investigation.