# Incident 19961123036349I: Head AX888HEAD, El Paso, TX, November 23, 1996

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: November 23, 1996, 08:30 local time
- Place: El Paso, TX
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Final Approach
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 31.7587° N, 106.4869° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of El Paso, TX, within about 9 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=31.7587&lon=-106.4869&mi=10
- Aircraft: N8257U, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N8257U-2018-01-29) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Head Balloons AX8-88 (registry code 4280200, https://openairdocs.org/model/head-balloons-ax8-88) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: HEAD AX888HEAD
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 962 total, 15 in this make and model, 15 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19961123036349I

## Narrative

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

NARRATIVE: DURING LANDING APPROACH THE BALLOON SUDDENLY DROPPED FROM WIND SHEAR. THE PILOT BURNED ALL THE WAY DOWN TO MINIMIZE FALL. ON FIRST BOUNCE ONE PASSENGER FELL OUT. ON SECOND BOUNCE SECOND PASSENGER GOT A CUT ABOVE THE EYE. THEN CAME TO REST IN GRASS. PASSENGER ROCHELLE GROSS TREATED AS OUT PATIENT. NONE OF THE FAA RESPONSIBILITIES WERE AT FAULT. BALLOON HIT SHEAR & DROPPED.

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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