Skydiving plane crash: Aircraft with 15 people on board skids off runway – How it happened, what was the cause?

At least 14 people were injured at a New Jersey airport, New York, following a skydiving plane crash while taking off on Wednesday evening (June 2, 2025). Officials stated that the plane, a Cessna 208B, was carrying 15 people, including the pilot, when it ran off the end of the runway and into the woods at Cross Keys Airport in Gloucester County around 5:30 p.m.

A hospital spokesperson confirmed that some of the injured passengers were rushed to Cooper University Hospital in Camden, New Jersey, on stretchers. The incident took place at the Cross Keys Airport, approximately 21 miles (34 kilometres) southeast of Philadelphia, according to the Associated Press, which quoted a Federal Aviation Administration spokesperson.

The plane crashed at Cross Keys Airport in New Jersey on Wednesday, injuring at least five people. Reports indicated that 14 individuals were on board at the time of the accident.

What caused the Skydiving Plane Crash?

According to a spokesperson quoted by The New York Times, three of the injured were taken to a trauma centre, while eight others received treatment for minor injuries in the emergency department. One person declined medical assistance at the scene, ABC6 reported.

“The pilot was reportedly in an ascent at that point and again reported some engine trouble, and that’s when he was trying to circle back to make it back down onto the ground but was unable to do so,” Halter told ABC6.

The aircraft was reportedly leased to Skydive Cross Keys, the region’s largest skydiving centre, based at the same airport, ABC6 added. The cause of the crash remains unknown, and the Federal Aviation Administration has launched a probe into the incident.

The New York Post noted that the area is quite popular for skydiving, with the “largest skydiving centre in the region" stationed just two minutes away from the airport.