ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 45649
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| Date: | Saturday 26 January 2002 |
| Time: | 08:15 |
| Type: |  Cameron N-145 |
| Owner/operator: | Ultimate Balloon Adventure |
| Registration: | N8004J |
| MSN: | 6260 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 105 hours |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 7 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | North Las Vegas, NV -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Landing |
| Nature: | Passenger |
| Departure airport: | Las Vegas, NV |
| North Las Vegas, NV | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
On January 26, 2002, about 0815 Pacific standard time, a Cameron Balloons US, model N-145, N8004J, made a hard landing in rough terrain about 13 nautical miles (nm) northwest of North Las Vegas, Nevada. The commercial pilot was fatally injured. Of the six passengers on board, two were seriously injured, and four sustained minor injuries. The balloon was substantially damaged. The balloon was owned and operated by the pilot, who was doing business as Ultimate Balloon Adventure, Las Vegas. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The fare-paying passengers' sightseeing flight was performed under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The flight originated from a vacant lot in west central Las Vegas, about 0720.
During a high wind landing in gusty conditions, the balloon impacted a residential block wall, hit the ground hard, and was dragged about 300 yards across rough and uneven terrain. During the initial impact with the block wall, one passenger was ejected from the gondola. The gondola went over the wall and impacted several dirt berms. The pilot was ejected during the ensuing hard touchdown. Thereafter, the gondola was dragged in the open desert terrain until stopping about 300 yards from the block wall. Prior to taking off, the pilot did not provide a safety briefing to the fare-paying passengers, and no safety helmets were carried in the gondola. Initially, the local surface wind was nearly calm, and the flight progressed without incident. However, when the wind speed increased the pilot attempted to land in the open desert terrain. His first touchdown was hard, and he aborted the attempt. Thereafter, the pilot flew for about 2 miles until he again attempted to land. The pilot and at least one passenger's head injuries would have been mitigated if protective helmets had been worn.
Probable Cause: The pilot's misjudged approach and inadequate obstacle clearance, which resulted in his failure to attain the proper touchdown point. Contributing factors were the high gusty wind condition, and the pilot's failure to provide protective safety equipment.
Accident investigation:
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Sources:
NTSB: https://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20020201X00160&key=1
Location
Images:
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 28-Oct-2008 00:45 | ASN archive | Added |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:24 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 09-Dec-2017 15:24 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Nature, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 24-Mar-2022 07:36 | Ron Averes | Updated [Aircraft type] |
| 29-Jul-2023 01:04 | Captain Adam | Updated [[Aircraft type]] |
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