Twelve people died when a small skydiving aircraft crashed near Butler, Missouri, after takeoff from the Butler Memorial Airport area.
The aircraft carried one pilot and 11 skydivers. Police said all aboard were killed, and the wreckage burned in a field south of Kansas City. The cause remains under investigation, with federal aviation authorities and local law enforcement on scene. Early reporting pointed to a rapid loss of altitude shortly after departure, but no aircraft type, operator or technical failure has been confirmed.
The crash adds another fatal general-aviation case to the sector's active safety docket.