The single-engine plane hit the south side of the mountain, about 200 feet from the bottom, shortly before 8 p.m. The granite structure, the largest such exposed rock in the world, reaches an elevation of 829 feet. A Confederate memorial carving sits on the north face of the mountain.

The park was open at the time of the accident, teeming with hikers and bicyclists, but none of the park visitors was injured, officials said.

The crash site, which overlooks Rockbridge Road, is not a wooded area and does not have walking trails, said Curtis Branscome, chief executive officer of the Stone Mountain Memorial Association, the park's governing authority.

Branscome said the crash debris spilled 100 feet in either direction from the point of impact, and the steep, almost vertical, drop meant fire officials had to rappel down the side of the mountain to reach the plane.

DeKalb Fire Capt. Eric Jackson said he did not know if anyone else was on board the plane. "They have seen the remains of just one person,"

Kathleen Bergen, a spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration, said the agency did not have any information on the plane.

"No aircraft has been reported missing by any air traffic facility in the metro area," she said.

Bergen said it was possible the plane was flying without filing a flight plan, which is permissible and often routine on clear nights for noncommercial flights. But it makes it difficult for authorities to determine the destination of the plane or identify the pilot immediately.

Parnell Bryant, who was bicycling on the mountain, said that shortly before the crash, he saw a low-flying plane that sounded like it was losing power.

"I turned around and looked, and I saw a plane hit the side of the mountain and burst into flames," Bryant said.

The impact of the crash shook houses in the Stonehaven subdivision, about a quarter of a mile from the mountain, residents said.

"We had just finished dinner when the whole house shook," said Jim Reddick. "I remember thinking, 'Gosh, it can't be thunder -- there's not a cloud in the sky.' "

Mark Britt, who ran up a small hill after hearing the explosion, said he saw the flames "pulse and surge."

"The fire was midway up the mountain, contained in a blazing fury, and was bright orange," he said.

Park officials said the last time they recalled a plane crashing into the mountain was in 1957 when a small plane flew into the north side of the granite structure.

The skylift that takes visitors to the top of the mountain and the walking trails will be closed at least until noon today, officials said.