# NTSB ERA25FA179: Cessna 180, N4679U, Trilla, IL, April 19, 2025

- Type: NTSB accident investigation
- Classification: Accident · Fatal · Class 3 · Field · Preliminary report
- Date: April 19, 2025, 10:16 local (15:16 UTC)
- Place: Trilla, IL · All, this is the exact location of the main wreckage
- Coordinates: 39.37419, -88.36345 (estimated)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.3742&lon=-88.3635&mi=10
- Phase of flight: [Uncontrolled descent](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/650) (OpenAirDocs' grouping)
- Defining event: [Uncontrolled descent: Collision with terr/obj (non-CFIT) ](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470)
- Highest injury: Fatal
- Injuries: 4 fatal
- Status: Investigation ongoing
- Investigation class: Class 3
- NTSB office: Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties: Textron Aviation, Continental Aerospace Technologies, FAA/FSDO
- NTSB case key (mKey): 200037
- NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ERA25FA179
- NTSB preliminary report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/200037/pdf
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA25FA179

## Preliminary report

On April 19, 2025, at 1016 central daylight time, a Cessna 180G, N4679U, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Trilla, Illinois. The private pilot and three passengers were fatally injured. The airplane was operated under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. According to flight history data, the airplane departed its home base in Menomonie, Wisconsin, on April 16, 2025, on a visual flight rules cross-country flight to Muhlenberg County Airport (M21), Greenville, Kentucky. The pilot purchased 42 gallons of 100 low lead aviation fuel at M21 before continuing to John C. Tune Airport (JWN), Nashville, Tennessee. On the day of the accident, the pilot flew back to M21 to retrieve a purse that a passenger inadvertently left at the airport during the previous visit. The pilot purchased an additional 12.81 gallons of aviation fuel before departing northbound. Automatic Dependent Surveillance–Broadcast (ADS-B) data showed the airplane proceeding toward Mattoon, Illinois. A witness reported that he was on a roof performing repairs when he heard an airplane overhead. He described the engine sound as “unusually low” and similar to that of a “crop duster.” The engine noise increased, as if the airplane was attempting to climb at the end of a low pass. He then heard an explosion and observed a fireball beyond the tree line. The witness further noted that it had recently stopped raining; however, it was “misting” at time of the accident. Surveillance video from a location near the accident site depicted weather conditions that included overcast clouds and light rain. The airplane was located on a county road about 8 nautical miles south of Coles County Memorial Airport (MTO), Mattoon, Illinois. An examination of the accident site revealed that the airplane struck power lines about 35 ft in height, before ground impact. The debris path extended approximately 100 ft along a 227° magnetic heading. The wreckage was highly fragmented. All major components of the airplane were located within the debris field. Flight control continuity was confirmed to all flight control surfaces through breaks that were consistent with tension overload. The engine was found partially buried in a crater about 3 ft deep, and was heavily impact damaged. The wreckage was recovered for further examination. The pilot held a private pilot certificate with a rating for airplane single engine land. He did not hold an instrument rating. Initial review of the pilot’s logbook revealed that he had accumulated about 300 hours of total flight experience as of October 2024.

## Sequence of events

The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened.

- [Unknown: Loss of control in flight](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/240); cases with it: [Cessna 180G, 2 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/240/sequence.md?model=2072616), [All aircraft, 5,002 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/240/sequence.md)
- [Uncontrolled descent: Collision with terr/obj (non-CFIT) ](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470) (defining event); cases with it: [Cessna 180G, 5 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470/sequence.md?model=2072616), [All aircraft, 10,189 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470/sequence.md)

## Aircraft

- Registration: [N4679U](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N4679U), registered now, S/N 18051379, built 1964 (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 180 (G)
- Registry model: [Cessna 180G](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-180g) (registry code 2072616) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: [Continental O-470 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-o-470-series) (registry code 17026, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs)
- Category: Airplane
- Serial number: 18051379
- Year built: 1964
- Airframe hours: 7048
- Damage: Destroyed
- Fire: On-Ground
- Flight: Personal, Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal
- Last inspection: Annual, July 1, 2024
- Departed: M21, Greenville, KY
- Destination: LUM, Menomonie, IL
- Airport: NA

## Weather

- Conditions: Instrument (IMC), Day
- Wind: 310° at 19 knots, gusting 22
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling: 500 ft broken
- Temperature: 55 °F, dew point 55 °F
- Altimeter: 30.05 inHg
- Observed at: MTO, 7 nm away
- METAR: KMTO 191512Z AUTO 31019G22KT 8SM BKN005 OVC021 13/13 A3005 RMK AO2 T01330128

## FAA reports on this event (1)

The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs).

- [Accident 20250419004219A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20250419004219A), Apr 19, 2025: Cessna 180G, Trilla, IL, Destroyed, 4 fatal. On April 19 at 1016 central time, Cessna 180G was destroyed when it collided with terrain near Trilla, IL. Aboard was 1 private pilot with 3 passengers that…

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.

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