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A tragic plane crash has claimed the lives of twelve individuals in Butler, Missouri.

According to authorities, an airplane carrying eleven skydivers and one pilot crashed shortly after takeoff from Butler Memorial Airport just south of Kansas City early Sunday (June 14).

A spokesperson for Bates County Emergency Management told media that the crash happened around 11:30 a.m. after a private plane left the airport. The plane turned around “for an unknown reason” before crashing.

The spokesperson confirmed that all people aboard the plane died, including 11 skydivers and the pilot. None of them has been identified as of press time. A representative for the Bates County Sheriff’s Office said that the accident was witnessed by multiple people, including some of the victims’ family members.

The FAA issued a statement following the crash, saying:

“A Pacific Aerospace P750 crashed while departing from Butler Memorial Airport in Missouri around 11:35 a.m. local time on Sunday, June 14. Air traffic services were not being provided at the time. Twelve people were on board. The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will investigate. The NTSB will lead the investigation.“

Authorities shared an update with more information during a press conference Sunday afternoon.

Missouri Highway Patrol Sgt. Justin Ewing told reporters that the plane, owned by Skydive Kansas City, was taking a group up to skydive.

A call was received by emergency personnel around 11:30 a.m. saying that the plane was down and engulfed in flames.

The plane that crashed was a Pacific Aerospace 750XL, a single-engine turboprop plane model popular for skydiving. The model is also used for other services, such as cargo transportation, aerial surveying, and medical evacuation flights.

Watch the press conference below:

The Bates County Coroner revealed the identities of all passengers on Tuesday afternoon.

A post shared by the coroner’s office said, “The Coroner’s Office has identified the victims of the plane crash that occurred on Sunday, June 14 through the provided manifest and through next of kin notifications. The list of individuals identified is currently just a list and the proper authorities are still attempting to make absolute certain the deceased are positively identified. While the investigation is still ongoing and we work to reunite the deceased with their loved ones, we feel comfortable that we have the identities of those twelve passengers on board the plane.”

Among the deceased are the following:

Jen Sharp, 55
Grand Junction, Colorado

Dane Cordes, 26
Richmond, Missouri

Dane Cordes was remembered by his fiancee, Natalie Sickle, who wrote: “Oh babe you deserve a better ending than this, my love. 9 years with you wasn’t near enough time to laugh together and make memories. I try to remind myself that you passed doing what you loved to do. You were so passionate about skydiving and loved your skydiving friends (or should I say family).”

Dustin McKinney, 44
Stillwel, Kansas

Dustin McKinney’s death was confirmed by numerous friends who shared the news online, remembering him as “one of a kind. A genuine brother to everyone. An incredible father.”

Nick Nash, 40
Harrisonville, Missouri

Nick Nash’s family and friends confirmed that he was among the deceased. In a post made to Facebook, Nash’s wife wrote, “..my best freaking friend.. my husband. my everything. god i love you so much and miss you so much already.”

Matthew Swope, 39
Independence, Missouri

Matthew Swope’s mother confirmed that he was one the plane that crashed. She wrote on Facebook:

“Today there was a tragic skydiving accident, 1 pilot, 11 parachuting passengers that died in a plane crash in Butler, Mo. One of them was my youngest child, Matthew Cole Swope, 39 y/o, doing what he loved best … Please pray for his 3 sisters, 2 brothers, myself and entire family as we traverse this unknown territory.”

Marcus Miller, 30
Lawrence, Kansas

Marcus Miller was remembered by numerous friends who shared memories of him, saying that he died doing what he loved.

Dave Hershberger, 54
Kansas City, Missouri

Dave Hershberger’s death was confirmed by members of the skydiving community.

Will Fischer, 23
De Soto, Kansas

Many friends of Will Fischer posted about his passing on social media. His sister confirmed the news.

Mike Shanahan, 54
Kansas City, Missouri

Mike Shanahan’s father confirmed his death in a statement on Facebook that read, “It is with heavy heart that I want family and friends know that our son Michael was one of the parachutists killed in the plane crash in Butler, Mo. today. He has been jumping for several years and absolutely loved it. We pray he is with his sister in heaven right now.”

Mike’s mother also responded, sharing photos of her son and a heartbreaking message.

The other victims are:

Kurt John Roy, 69, from Windber, Pennsylvania
Sai Karthik Varma Datla, 24, from India
Blake Thacker, 25, from Olathe, Kansas

No photos or further details about these individuals are available at this time.

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