Authorities have identified the three men killed when a small airplane crashed Tuesday on I-55 in downstate Lincoln.
The occupants were 22-year-old Mitchell W. Janssen of Princeville, 30-year-old Kevin G. Chapman of Urbana and 33-year-old Matthew R. Hanson of Pulaski, Wisconsin, according to a statement from Illinois State Police.
The plane burst into flames after crashing in the middle of the highway, according to state police. The crash occurred at 8:49 a.m. about 35 miles northeast of Springfield in Logan County.
In a statement, the FAA said the plane, a single-engine, four-seat Cessna 172, was destroyed. The NTSB is leading an investigation.
Road closures lasted until about 2:30 p.m., state police said.
In January, former mayor of Springfield Frank Edwards and his wife, Sangamon County Coroner Cinda Edwards, were two of the three people killed when a small plane crashed in unincorporated Sangamon County.
