A skydiving plane crash in Missouri occurred on Sunday, 14th, killing everyone on board. The ill fated aircraft was carrying a group of local skydivers.
The plane, which crashed at around 11:30 a.m. had just left Butler airport. According to Butler airport’s acting manager, Dennis Jacobs, the plane seemed to be losing power as it took off.
Hence the pilot tried to maneuver the plane for crash landing. Very likely, Jacobs said, the pilot was targeting the nearby highway.
Unfortunately, the plane nosedived and crashed uncontrollably.
Skydiving in Missouri
There are popular skydiving sites in the state of Missouri. As such, skydiving is common in the area.
Popular skydiving sites in Missouri can be found in the Kansas City area, Southwest Missouri, and St. Louis. Therefore regular local skydivers and foreigners frequent these areas. It is the same way people seek out hiking places.
On this fateful expedition, 12 people were on board the skydiving plane. There were 11 skydivers and the pilot.
The Missouri Crash Investigation
According to a high ranking official of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Michael Graham, the aircraft belonged to Sky High Arrow LLC.
He disclosed that Skydive Kansas City operated the plane. He also added that this type of aircraft does not have a black box. Hence, the investigators will rely greatly on other electronic devices recovered from the crash site. Investigators may even use gadgets belonging to the victims.
Graham underlined the complexity of the investigation, noting that the plane went up in flames after crashing.
The Missouri Skydiving Plane Crash Victims
The NTSB confirmed that the crash claimed 12 lives. However, the officials could not release their names immediately.
They wanted to ensure that the next of kin knew the situation first. As such, the officials only named the three victims whose families had identified them.
One of the victims, Jennifer Sharp, belonged to the US Parachute Association and was said to be an avid skydiver.
Another was Dave Hershberger, an employee of the North Kansas City School District. He taught orchestra in High and Middle schools.
The third crash victim was identified as Michael Shanahan.
On Tuesday, the coroner’s office in Bates County revealed that the plane crash victims ranged in age from 23 – 69. While a majority were Missouri residents, others were from Kansas, with one being from India.