Skydiving plane crashes in Missouri, 11 passengers and pilot killed

 A pilot and 11 skydivers were killed on Sunday when an airplane crashed near an airport in Missouri, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

The crash occurred near the Butler Memorial Airport in the city of Butler, the highway patrol said.

Highway patrol officials confirmed 12 people were on board the plane when the crash occurred around 11:30 a.m. local time, according to ABC affiliate station KMBC-TV in Kansas City, Missouri.

Bates County Sheriff Chad Anderson said during a news briefing that the crash occurred shortly after the plane took off. Anderson confirmed that it was a skydiving flight that operated out of Butler Memorial Airport and that some of the passengers were preparing to skydive.

Sheriff Anderson said there were family members who witnessed the crash.

"Our hearts go out to them," Anderson said. "There's nothing we really can't say to make it better. We just pray for them and their loved ones, and their friends, and their family, and hope that they can recover some sense of normalcy, if they can."

Anderson said the plane crashed in a field that is part of the airport property.

He said the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are investigating.

Skydive Kansas City, the company that operated the skydiving flight, released a statement saying the plane carried 11 skydivers and one pilot.

"This is a devastating loss for everyone connected to Skydive Kansas City and for the wider skydiving community," a spokesperson for the company said in the statement. "Our deepest sympathies are with the families, friends, and loved ones of all who were lost."Authorities were withholding the names of those killed pending notification of next of kin.

"At this time, the focus of the management and ownership team is to assist investigators and to support the staff and the broader skydiving community," the spokesperson for Skydive Kansas City said. "The entire team is in shock, and the community is close-knit."