KSHB 41 reporter Isabella Ledonne reports on stories in Overland Park, Johnson County and topics about government accountability. Share your story idea with Isabella.
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12 people are dead after a plane crashed in Butler, Missouri that was taking skydivers in the air for a jump on Sunday morning.
The plane took off from the Butler Memorial Airport in Bates County, Missouri. It's about an hour south of Kansas City.
According to Bates County Sheriff Chad Anderson, the plane crashed at 11:27 a.m. shortly after takeoff.
Those on board include one pilot and 11 skydivers. The plane was operated by Skydive Kansas City, a company based out of Buttler, Missouri.
Sheriff Anderson said it appears the crash was an accident, but the cause is unknown. Officials have not released any further details since earlier on Sunday. Business 49 Highway will remain closed during the investigation.
KSHB 41 News reporter Isabella Ledonne traveled up to Falcon Skydiving near Parkville, a company not associated with the crash, to learn more about how things are checked for safety before a jump. But instead, she learned how tight knit the skydiving community is and how skydivers are remembering their own.
Charles Crinklaw has skydived thousands of times, sharing his passion with hundreds of first timers in Kansas City.
"It is our passion, everyone of us that does it," Crinklaw said. "It's the only time that I feel completely in control in an out of control world. When we leave the aircraft, we're in control of everything."
But his jumps on Sunday carry a heavier weight.
"Everybody on that plane was somebody that I know," Crinklaw said. "I know four of them very, very well. They jumped with me [at Falcon Skydiving] on a regular basis."
Many first time jumpers offered up their support for the victims and their families.
"I did hear about that right before we came here, and I pray for their families," skydiver Julie Webb said. "It kind of made me stop and pause and just think about it."
Crinklaw is a regular skydiver and the central regional director of the United States Parachute Association (USPA). He told Ledonne 10 of the crash victims were experienced jumpers, having logged 500+ jumps. The other two victims were the pilot and a tandem jumper.
"We lost a USPA member that actually works for USPA in Virginia. She was teaching new instructors how to be coaches," Crinklaw said. "It shocked everybody. We just were walking around here numb for awhile."
Sky diving planes are required to get maintenance every 100 hours and pilots require special training on top of their regular aviation hours, according to Crinklaw. Both plane and skydiving equipment are regularly checked before each jump.
"For something to happen, it's just rare," Crinklaw said. "This is an unfortunate accident."
Divers calculate the risks before each jump, but Crinklaw explained plane take off and landing are the most dangerous parts.
"We know we're taking risks, but we mitigate them by having the best stuff we possibly can, the best equipment, the best pilots and the best airplanes," Crinklaw said.
While Crinklaw is reeling from the loss in the skydiving community, he's remembering his friends in the way he knows best.
"Every single jump I've already done [today], I've told them I'm thinking about them," Crinklaw said. "I'll probably make another eight or nine more today, and then we'll go sit with our friends tonight and sit around a bonfire and just hug and cry."
The names and ages of the plane crash victims has not been released yet.
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