What happened
At 0121 local time, the pilot reported being over Elko, Nevada, and indicated that the airport was in sight with no anticipated difficulties for landing. The latest weather data was transmitted to the crew and acknowledged, showing a ceiling of 200 feet with thin overcast, lower scattered clouds at 100 feet, visibility of 7 miles, an east-northeast wind at 6 mph, and an altimeter setting of 30.14. No further transmissions were received from the flight after this exchange.
Elko radio attempted multiple times to re-establish contact with the aircraft but failed. At approximately 0133, they notified Airway Traffic Control that communication had been lost. Salt Lake City Air Traffic Control then requested Battle Mountain radio to attempt contact in case the pilot had diverted to an alternate destination, but these efforts also yielded no response.
At 0200, United Air Lines Flight 16, en route to Salt Lake City, was asked to check the vicinity of Elko for signs of fire or wreckage. While scanning the area near the airport, the crew observed an intense fire approximately two miles west of Runway 23. The location was reported to ground stations in Elko and Salt Lake City, and the local fire warden was dispatched.
Personnel from the Civil Aeronautics Communications Station arrived at the scene around 0230. They found the aircraft wreckage severely burned on a ridge top, which stood approximately 11 feet above the airport elevation, located about two and a half miles west of Runway 23. The investigation determined that all occupants were fatally injured in the crash, with one passenger dying shortly after being removed from the wreckage.
Findings
The Board concluded that the accident resulted from the pilot's decision to continue the landing approach after losing visual contact with the airport while operating in dense ground fog. A contributing factor was the pilot's lack of familiarity with the terrain immediately surrounding the airport.