Skydiving plane crashes after taking off in France, killing all 11 aboard

NANCY, France — A skydiving plane crashed in northeastern France on Sunday, killing all 11 people on board, authorities said.

The plane suffered a malfunction and “fell almost vertically” soon after taking off from the Nancy-Essey airfield on the outskirts of the city of Nancy, the region’s prefect, Yves Séguy, said.

It crashed on the edge of a built-up area near the airfield, he told broadcaster BFM-TV.

“Had it occurred just a few dozen meters away, the accident could have caused collateral casualties,” Séguy, prefect of the Meurthe-et-Moselle region, said.

The plane belonged to a skydiving club and was taking part in a parachute jump, he said.

The plane banked to the left after it took off and crashed less than a minute later near houses, according to the global flight tracking service provider Flightradar24.

The dead included five parachuting instructors, five clients and the pilot, according to L’Est Républicain, a local newspaper.

Flight tracking sites identified the plane as a single-engine Pilatus PC-6, a small transporter of freight, passengers and skydivers.

Emergency services responded immediately and were providing psychological support to several relatives of the victims, Séguy said, adding that authorities were also collecting witness statements.

Police cordoned off the crumpled wreckage.

Séguy said the crash shocked witnesses who saw it.

“We are deploying all available resources,” he said, including emergency medical teams, fire services, police and mental health support for the victims’ families.

A local resident, identified as John Curaku by BFM-TV, told the broadcaster that he was in his garden when he heard what sounded like a plane’s engine stopping, immediately followed by a bang.

He said he went to the crash site and “there were no signs of life,” with two of the bodies thrown a few meters (yards) from the plane.