# Accident 19940901024839A: Balwks FIREFLY7, Storm Lake, IA, September 1, 1994

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 1, 1994, 19:15 local time
- Place: Storm Lake, IA
- Airport: Storm Lake Municipal Airport
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Level Off Touchdown
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 42.6391° N, 95.1907° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=42.6391&lon=-95.1907&mi=10
- Aircraft: N2597S, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N2597S-2013-09-27) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Balloon Works FIREFLY 7-15 (registry code 1050118, https://openairdocs.org/model/balloon-works-firefly-7-15) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: NONE (registry code 00000, https://openairdocs.org/engine/none) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: BALWKS FIREFLY7
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 474 total, 474 in this make and model, 13 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI94LA309](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI94LA309) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19940901024839A

## Narrative

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

NEAR DESTINATION GOT DOWNDRAFT FROM NEARBY THUNDERSTORM. UNABLE RECOVER. IMPACTED BOUNCED. DRAGGED INTO POWERLINE.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

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 CHI94LA309](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI94LA309), Sep 2, 1994: Balloon Works Fire FLY 7-15 (N2597S), Storm Lake, IA, substantial damage. Probable cause: the pilot's excessive rate of descent to landing. Factors in the accident were the gusts and downdraft.

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.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.