What happened
During a cross-country flight, a Cessna 180 underwent an in-flight breakup. The aircraft's wreckage was distributed across approximately one mile of rolling terrain. Following the impact, the fuselage was consumed by fire.
A pilot flying a Cessena 195 in the same flight reported encountering a strong downdraft while attempting to climb to remain above the cloud layer. This encounter led the aircraft into clouds characterized by moderate to severe turbulence and significant up/downdrafts. The intensity of these vertical movements caused the vertical speed indicator to exceed its operational limits. After recovering below the cloud layer, the pilot of the Cessna 195 lost contact with the Cessna 180. Upon arriving at the destination, the pilot learned that the Cessna 180 had crashed in the same area where the turbulence was encountered.