Pilot Killed as Small Plane Hits Fog-Shrouded Hillside : Aviation: Residents near the crash site say they heard the low-flying aircraft but could not see it. The pilot’s name was not released.

A single-engine aircraft crashed Friday in the fog-shrouded hills northeast of Sylmar, exploding on impact and killing the pilot, authorities said.

The pilot, whose name was not made public, was apparently the only person on board, authorities said.

The small, single-engine Cessna hit a rocky hillside at 3:15 p.m. in a rugged area above the Pacoima Dam northeast of Sylmar, said Federal Aviation Administration official Jerry Johnston.

“It appears to be weather-related. The cloud cover was very low that it was flying in,” Los Angeles County Fire Capt. Steve Valenzuela said. “Residents heard it but didn’t see it. They heard a low-flying aircraft and then a large boom.”

Air rescue crews located the wreckage on a steep hillside about 2,700 feet above sea level about an hour after the crash but could not land. The rescuers were unable to reach the plane on foot before nightfall, but two firefighters were lowered on a winch and inspected the crash scene.

Authorities have not obtained the flight plan but said it appeared that the plane was flying out of the San Fernando Valley. A logbook recovered after the crash showed the flight may have originated in Burbank.

One of the residents who reported the crash was David Lewis, a former supervisor of engine repairs for Lockheed who lives nearby on Algranti Avenue. He said planes frequently fly through the hills above his home because there is a cut in the mountains there.

Lewis was working outside his house when he heard the plane pass low but could not see it because of the cloud cover. He did not hear the noise of the impact.

“I heard the engine and it sounded to me like it was working perfectly,” he said. “All of a sudden, I heard the engine stop, then the sound of the parts tinkling down the mountainside.”