They must have been blown away by the sight of the Las Vegas Strip, which lit up like a nuclear explosion in the pitch dark night.
The Cirrus SR-22, a single-engine aeroplane powered by pistons, took off from Lake Havasu City Airport.
Arizona, and was headed towards the North Las Vegas Airport (KVGT).
The owner, a private pilot, was at the controls with his wife and mother-in-law.
At this altitude, they were in constant radar communication with air traffic control and following a Visual Flight Rules (VFR) flight plan .
They were anticipating an instrument landing system (ILS) approach and touchdown.