Only seconds after the pilot of the Gulfstream III jet spotted the runway at an airport in Aspen, Colorado, the plane crashed into a hillside and burst into flames, killing all 18 on board.
The aircraft, traveling from Los Angeles to Colorado, was attempting to land in snowy weather on Thursday at 7 p.m. (3 a.m. Irish time on Friday) when it crashed into a hill called Shale Bluffs about 500 yards west of the one-runway Aspen-Pitkin County Airport, officials said.
Forty-nine seconds after the hour the controller said 'do you have the runway in sight? And at 55 seconds after the hour the pilot said 'yes I have the runway in sight' and that was the last transmission, Ms Carol Carmody, acting chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, told reporters.
"The collision as nearly as we can pinpoint was 90 seconds after the hour, she said after investigators began their first day of searching for clues to explain the accident," she said.
While the cause of the crash was not immediately known, pilots said landing at the airport, which is at 7,815 feet, can be hazardous even in clear weather.
Mr Marc Foulkrod, president of Avjet, which operated the plane, said the crew had flown into and out of Aspen on multiple trips in March.
The plane was owned by Hollywood producer Andrew Vajna, whose credits include Total Recalland Die Hard With a Vengeance.
"All of our thoughts and prayers go out to the families and friends of those who were on board," his company, Cinergi Pictures Entertainment said in a statement.