Fourteen Killed in Pilatus PC-12 Crash

Seven adults and seven children aboard a Pilatus PC-12 (N128CM) were killed when the turboprop single crashed at approximately 3 p.m. local time on March 22 while on approach to Bert Mooney Airport in Butte, Mont. The group was reportedly headed from California to Bozeman, Mont., for a skiing trip, but the pilot diverted to Butte for an unspecified reason. According to eyewitnesses, the PC-12 “nosed in” just 500 feet short of the airport, with the airplane wreckage coming to rest in an adjacent cemetery. The aircraft, registered to Eagle Cap Leasing, was substantially damaged, according to the FAA. The NTSB has not yet ruled out any causes, an agency spokesman said, and the investigation was still ongoing at press time.