# Incident 19950430015419I: Balwks FIREFLY824, Fairbanks, AK, April 30, 1995

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: April 30, 1995, 21:35 local time
- Place: Fairbanks, AK
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Descent
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 64.8378° N, 147.7164° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Fairbanks, AK, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=64.8378&lon=-147.7164&mi=10
- Aircraft: N9005D, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N9005D-2013-06-07) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Balloon Works FIREFLY 8-24 (registry code 1050107, https://openairdocs.org/model/balloon-works-firefly-8-24) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: BALWKS FIREFLY824
- People aboard: 5
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 379 total, 300 in this make and model, 7 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19950430015419I

## Narrative

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

NARRATIVE: AT 2030 LCL TIME ON 4/30/95 A HOT AIR BALLOON WITH FOUR PASSENGERS AND A FLIGHT CREW OF ONE LIFTED OFF FROM THE PARKING AREA AT WEDGEWOOD MANOR HOTEL IN FAIRBANKS, ALASKA. AT APPROXIMATELY 2130 LCL TIME ON DESCENT FOR LANDING AT APPROXIMATELY 500' AGL THE BALLOON ENTERED INCREASED WIND SPEED CAUSING FALSE LIFT EFFECT. UPON DESCENDING THRU THAT LAYER OF AIR THERE WAS INSUFFICIENT HEAT TO MAINTAIN LEVEL FLIGHT AND THE BASKET OF THE BALLOON CONTACTED POWER LINES. IT THEN BOUNCED BACK AND RESUMED NORMAL FLIGHT CONTROL AND LANDED WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT. THE AIRBORN HEATER WAS OPERATING NORMALLY. CORRECTIVE ACTION: MAY 8, 1995, MET WITH SAMUEL RACINA AND COUNSELED HIM ON BALLOON OPS IN CONGESTED AREAS. ALSO DISCUSSED THE OCCURRENCE OF INVERSION LAYERS NEAR THE SURFACE IN THE LATE EVENING.

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.

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