Gov. Ige Comments on Skydiving Plane Crash That Killed 11

The 11 people aboard a plane taking passengers on a skydiving trip were killed after the plane crashed and burned on Friday night, June 21, 2019, at Dillingham Airfield north of Honolulu.

The plane, a twin-engine Beechcraft BE65, crashed under unknown circumstances while taking off from Dillingham Airfield on O‘ahu’s North Shore around 6:30 p.m., the Federal Aviation Administration said.

The plane was destroyed by the fire.

“In my 40 years as a firefighter here in Hawai‘i, this is the most tragic aircraft incident that we’ve had,” said Manny Neves, Honolulu Fire Department fire chief , said at a news conference on Friday night. “We had some helicopters with the military, but this is a civilian plane that went down.”

“There is nothing left of the plane,” he added.

The cause of the crash was not known.

The National Transportation Safety Board was sending a team to investigate.

“The people of Hawai’i join me in extending our deepest condolences to the family and friends of the 11 lives lost on Friday evening,” Gov. David Ige said on June. 23. “I want to assure you that the state will do whatever it can to assist with the federal investigation. We will miss the energy, vitality and spirit of those lost in this terrible crash.