Aspen, Colo. — A chartered jet slammed into a hillside Thursday as it approached an airport in this ski resort town, killing all 18 people on board, authorities said.
The plane fell apart as it dove across a culvert and struck another bluff just short of the runway. Wreckage and bodies were strewn across the crash site. Two dead passengers were still strapped to their seats, and one was sprawled on a hillside.
The Gulfstream III was en route to Aspen from Los Angeles. Fifteen passengers and three crew were on board, said Allen Kenitzer, a Federal Aviation Administration spokesman in Seattle. It was not clear what airport the plane had departed from.
There were no distress calls before the crash, said Marie Munday, a spokeswoman for the Pitkin County Sheriff's Office. All 18 bodies were recovered, she said.
The National Weather Service reported light snow and mist in the Aspen area Thursday night.
The plane was preparing to land when it hit a hillside about 20 feet high and lost its tail. It fell apart as it dove across a 200-foot chasm between the hill and the airport, then slammed into another bluff about 500 yards short of the runway.
The plane was registered to Airborne Charter Inc. at Burbank, Calif., said Bruce Nelson, an FAA operations officer in Los Angeles.
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