Plane crash in Utah filmed from cockpit.

[Pilot DAR]

Complete speculation on my part, but maybe the pilot had no intention of attempting to land, but rather just to low fly in a wide open area. Like a glassy water landing, he suddenly had no idea how high he was, and whether he was going up or down. The flash of the shadow of the wing just before the crash seemed way too brief to be what one would see during a flare, particularly during a cautionary landing onto an unbroken surface.

Added to that, particularly on older 100 series Cessnas, the nosewheel hangs down a long way, and further than the mains in cruise. If you fly the plane onto the surface without flaring, striking the nosewheel first is a certainty. Seeing as the wreck had no nosewheel at all, I suspect that's what happened. A flared "landing" onto the snow still might have bent the nosewheel back, but not likely torn it right away.

Yeah, the surface would not support a wheel landing, I think that was secondary. A long time ago, when I was very much less wise, I flew the same way up a frozen lake in a wheel 182. I suddenly realized I had no idea of my AGL, and climbed. To this day, I don't know how close I came, but I never forgot, and never did it again (out in the middle )!