# Accident 20001008031339A: Galaxy GALAXY7, Inyokern, CA, October 8, 2000

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: October 8, 2000, 08:00 local time
- Place: Inyokern, CA
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Level Off Touchdown
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 35.5504° N, 117.6693° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.5504&lon=-117.6693&mi=10
- Aircraft: N52233, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N52233-2018-01-17) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Galaxy Balloons GALAXY 7 (registry code 3760520, https://openairdocs.org/model/galaxy-balloons-galaxy-7) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: GALAXY GALAXY7
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 290 total, 287 in this make and model, 21 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX01LA005](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX01LA005) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20001008031339A

## Narrative

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

(-23) ON 10/08/00 AT APPROX. 0745 HOURS, DURING A SIGHTSEEING FLIGHT FROM INYOKERN AIRPORT, THE PILOT OF N52233, A HOT AIR BALLOON, WAS MAKING HIS SECOND TOUCH AND GO LANDING IN AN OPEN FIELD SOUTHEAST OF INYOKERN AIRPORT, WHEN A HARD LANDING IN AN UNEXPECTED GUST OF WIND RESULTED IN AN UPSET BASKET CAUSING INJURIES TO TOW OF ITS THREE OCCUPANTS.END. (.4) ON OCTOBER 8, 2000, ABOUT 0800 HOURS PACIFIC DAYLIGHT TIME, A GALAXY BALLOONS, INC., GALAXY 7, N52233, OWNED AND OPERATED BY THE PILOT, MADE A HARD LANDING ABOUT 5 MILES SOUTHEAST OF INYOKERN, CALIFORNIA. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED, AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED FOR THE AERIAL SIGHTSEEING FLIGHT. THE BALLOON SUSTAINED MINOR DAMAGE, AND THE COMMERCIAL CERTIFICATED PILOT WAS SERIOUSLY INJURED. ONE OF THE FARE-PAYING PASSENGERS RECEIVED A MINOR INJURY, AND ONE PASSENGER WAS NOT INJURED. THE FLIGHT WAS PERFORMED UNDER 14 CFR PART 91, AND ORIGINATED FROM INYOKERN ABOUT 0715. THE PILOT REPORTED TO THE NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD INVESTIGATOR THAT ON TAKEOFF THE WIND WAS, AS FORECAST, BETWEEN 2 AND 4 MILES PER HOUR (MPH). DURING THE FLIGHT THE WIND DIRECTION CHANGED, AND ITS SPEED INCREASED.                       AFTER ABOUT 20 MINUTES OF FLIGHT, THE PILOT ATTEMPTED TO LAND BUT ABORTED THE ATTEMPT IN THE PREVAILING 5 TO 6 MPH WIND. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT HE THEN FLEW FOR ANOTHER 15 MINUTES AND LANDED IN A 12 MPH WIND.

## 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 LAX01LA005](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX01LA005), Oct 8, 2000: Galaxy Balloons Galaxy 7 (N52233), Inyokern, CA, minor damage. Probable cause: The pilot's hard landing during a high wind condition.

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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