The aircraft was attempting to land at night and in reduced visibility conditions at Jackson Hole, WY after a flight from Austin, TX. The aircraft apparently landed in an area parallel to the runway. The aircraft was heavily damaged, including a sheared nose landing gear. The following description is based on the NTSB accident synopsis.
The aircraft was on an unscheduled domestic flight from Austin, TX to Jackson, WY and was operating under Federal Regulations Part 135. According to the captain they could see runway 18 from 9,000 feet mean sea level and 5 nautical miles away from the field. The flight crew was unable to get the runway lights turned on before their landing attempt. The NTSB also indicated that the flight crew landed the aircraft below weather minimums.
The NTSB reported that the airplane first contacted the ground approximately 195 feet (59 meters) left of the runway center line, and 3,500 feet (1066 meters) along the runway from the threshold. The airplane settled into approximately two feet of snow (60 cm), and left a track in the snow for approximately 600 feet (183 meters). Both the nose gear and nose cone were completely separated from the aircraft, the right wing was partially separated from the airplane, and the left wing was bent and badly damaged. The NTSB determined that the probable causes included the pilot’s failure to follow appropriate approach procedures and perform a missed approach when the runway was not in sight below approach minimums. Contributing factors were the copilot’s failure to follow current approach procedures and use the correct frequency to turn on the runway lights. Weather and visibility conditions were also factors.