‘Classic attempt to...’: New details in San Diego plane crash reveal ‘no runway lights, heavy fog at airport’

New details related to the San Diego plane crash revealed that the runway lights were out, a weather alert system wasn’t working, and there was heavy fog at a San Diego airport when a pilot who had flown across the country decided to proceed with landing, investigators said Friday.

The private jet carrying a music executive and five others crashed there. All six aboard the aircraft were killed. Miraculously, everyone on the ground escaped safely, officials said, including a family of four who fled with their dogs after the aircraft tore off their home's roof and engulfed it in flames, the Associated Press reported.

Investigator Dan Baker of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said officials will work over the next year to determine what caused the Cessna 550 Citation to crash just before 4 am Thursday.

What we know about San Diego crash

According to audio of the conversation posted by LiveATC.net, the pilot acknowledged that the weather conditions for landing at the small airport were not ideal.

Assistant San Diego Fire Department Chief Dan Eddy said the fog was so thick in the morning that “you could barely see in front of you.”

The pilot had reportedly debated diverting to a different airport while discussing the visibility with an air traffic controller at a regional Federal Aviation Administration control tower.

Meanwhile, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had posted an official notice for pilots that the lights were out of service, but it’s not known whether the pilot had checked it.

The pilot didn’t discuss the lights being out with air traffic control, but was aware that the airport’s weather alert system was inoperable, the Associated Press reported.

Ultimately, the pilot is heard saying that he’ll stick with the plan to land at Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport. “Doesn’t sound great but we’ll give it a go,” he reportedly told the air traffic controller.

The plane crashed about 2 miles (3.22 kilometers) from the airport.

Likely factors in San Diego plane crash | 'Classic attempt to...'

Investigator Dan Baker was quoted as saying that a power surge knocked out the weather system at the airport but the pilot was aware of the fog and an air traffic controller gave him weather information from Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, about 4 miles (6.44 kilometers) north.

The aircraft took off from Teterboro, New Jersey, near Manhattan, at about 11:15 pm local time Wednesday and made a fuel stop in Wichita, Kansas, before continuing on to San Diego. He was returning to San Diego after a band he manages, Pierce The Veil, played for a sold-out audience at Madison Square Garden.

That overnight schedule wouldn't be allowed for an airliner under federal crew rest rules, but those regulations don't apply to private planes.

Meanwhile, former NTSB and FAA crash investigator Jeff Guzzetti said he thinks dense fog and fatigue after the pilot flew all night long were likely factors in the crash.

“This accident has all the earmarks of a classic attempt to approach an airport in really bad weather and poor visibility,” Guzzetti said.

What the pilot should have done

Guzzetti was quoted by AP as saying that there were other airports that the crew could have gone to. He said pilots are required to check FAA posts called Notices to Airmen that alert pilots to any issues such as runway lights being out.

“It’s fairly easy for the pilot to get that information and they are required to get that information before any flight they take,” Guzzetti said.

The pilot also would have likely noticed the lights weren’t working as he descended. "Without lights, procedure dictated that he should have climbed and diverted to another airport," Guzzetti said.