Santa Ana plane crash: Five dead after aircraft nosedives into car in California

None of the passengers travelling on the twin-engine Cessna survived

Five colleagues who were travelling together on a business trip died after their plane crashed into a California parking lot.

Scott Shepherd, founder of the real estate consulting firm, Category III Aviation Corp. and an experienced pilot, was flying his staff to a conference in Orange County when their twin-engine Cessna nosedived about a mile away from the landing site. Video footage captured from the parking lot shows the small aircraft free falling towards the ground, just before it crashed into an empty car.

All five of the people on the plane were killed, including Mr Shepherd, Lara Shepherd, Floria and Navid Hakimi, and Nasim Ghanadan.

Federal authorities at the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) have launched an investigation to determine the cause of the crash.

Orange County Fire Authority's Tony Bommarito described the limited destruction the plane crash had as a “miracle,” adding that further fatalities may have been possible on the ground.

"I don't know anything about what this pilot did or what he was thinking but it could have been much more tragic," he told CBS News. "The fact that there was no injuries on ground is a miracle in itself."

The plane was nearing the John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana where it was expected to land after flying from Concord in Northern California. As CBS News’ Desmond Shaw noted on Twitter, investigators will likely seek to understand why the pilot didn't attempt to land on the freeway. Planes have landed on the freeway near the Santa Ana airport twice this year alone.

Eye witnesses told local news outlets they heard a “sputtering noise” as the aircraft was nosediving. The plane crashed into the popular shopping area around 12:30 p.m. on Sunday afternoon.

Ms Hakimi appeared excited for the trip to Southern California, posting an image to her Instagram from the tarmac moments before the plane took off. In the photo, the real estate consultant is posing on the steps of the aircraft as her hair is blowing in her face. The caption reads: "Flying out to LA."

Dashboard cameras in at least two vehicles reportedly captured footage of the tragic crash, and will likely be used by investigators to help determine the cause of the incident.