Overview
- A private plane carrying 11 skydivers and a pilot crashed in a field beside Butler Memorial Airport, killing all 12 people on board after the aircraft turned back shortly after takeoff on Sunday.
- Emergency crews extinguished a post‑crash fire and local authorities closed Business 49 Highway near the airport as state troopers and county agencies secured the scene.
- The aircraft was a Pacific Aerospace 750XL operated by Skydive Kansas City and manufactured in 2010, according to FAA records and local officials.
- NTSB and FAA investigators are on site conducting a multi‑day probe that includes wreckage examination, record reviews and interviews while officials check whether any jumpers exited before the crash.
- Aviation experts note skydiving flights operate under private‑aircraft rules and past accidents have cited maintenance and safety‑culture problems, a context investigators will consider as they seek a cause.