A small plane carrying pickleball players crashed into trees near Wimberley late Thursday night, killing all five people on board, officials said.The plane, a Cessna 421C, had departed from Amarillo and was headed to New Braunfels National Airport. The crash happened around 11 p.m. in Wimberley, about 40 miles southwest of Austin, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety. Photographs from the scene show the plane destroyed in a wooded area.“The pilot and four passengers on board were pronounced dead at the scene,” said Sgt. Billy Ray told reporters, as quoted by the AP.The names of the victims were not immediately released. The Amarillo Pickleball Club said the people on board the plane were members traveling to a tournament.The players were on their way to an event at the Cranky Pickle in New Braunfels. The tournament was canceled Friday, with organizers planning to honor the victims.Air traffic control audio indicated a concern shortly before the crash. A controller said, “He started moving erratically and now his track has disappeared from the scope. So we want to make sure everything is OK with him.”Federal agencies are leading the investigation into the crash.Dan Dyer, president of the Amarillo Pickleball Club, said he knew most of the victims and had played with them. “I’ve given them medals. They were outstanding players. They went out to win some games,” he said. “There are dozens of tournaments each weekend. Some people get the bug; others don’t. But once they get the bug, they will travel to a tournament.”Another plane traveling from Amarillo for the same event landed safely in New Braunfels. At least one pilot reported receiving a distress signal before the plane went down.Weather conditions in the area before the accident were mostly cloudy, with a thunderstorm later reported by the National Weather Service. Wimberly and New Braunfels are popular tourist destinations in the Texas Hill Country.
