# Accident 19810801090249A: Cessna 180, Cotton, MN, August 1, 1981

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 1, 1981, 06:15 local time
- Place: Cotton, MN
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Unauth Low Level Opns
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 47.1600° N, 92.4698° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=47.1600&lon=-92.4698&mi=10
- Aircraft: N4988E, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N4988E-2012-12-10) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 180 (registry code 2072602, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-180) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental O-470 series (registry code 17026, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-o-470-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 180
- Reported engine: CONT O470K
- People aboard: 4
- Fatal injuries: 4
- Pilot flight hours: 207 total, 63 in this make and model
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI81LA106](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI81LA106), [NTSB CHI81DAMS5](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI81DAMS5) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19810801090249A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

FLEW INTO AREA LOW CEILING AND VISIBILITY. WRECKAGE FOUND NINE YEARS LATER INDICATES LOSS OF CONTROL INTO TREES.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (2)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB CHI81LA106](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI81LA106), Aug 1, 1981: Cessna 180 (N4988E), Cotton, MN, destroyed, 4 fatal. Probable cause: THE PILOT-IN-COMMAND'S FAILURE TO MAINTAIN ALTITUDE AND AIRCRAFT CONTROL AFTER AN ENCOUNTER WITH INSTRUMENT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS.
- [NTSB CHI81DAMS5](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI81DAMS5), Aug 1, 1981: Cessna 180 (N4988E), Missing Aircraft, destroyed, 4 fatal

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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