Missouri skydiving plane crash leaves 12 dead as investigators probe cause

Twelve people were killed when a Pacific Aerospace 750XL skydiving plane crashed in Missouri. The aircraft had completed nine flights over the weekend, including two on Sunday, before going down as investigators seek the cause. Federal agencies have long flagged oversight, maintenance, and training for skydiving flights, and the FAA has convened a committee to study safety improvements. The skydiving industry says participants follow FAA rules and notes that last year’s roughly 3.5 million jumps produced 16 civilian fatalities, most from human error.