# Accident 20030222002109A: Raven RX7, Reno, NV, February 22, 2003

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: February 22, 2003, 08:51 local time
- Place: Reno, NV
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 39.6667° N, 119.8667° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.6667&lon=-119.8667&mi=10
- Aircraft: N6413N, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N6413N) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Aerostar International RX-7 (registry code 7487007, https://openairdocs.org/model/aerostar-international-rx-7) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: RAVEN RX7
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX03LA095](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX03LA095) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030222002109A

## Narrative

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

(.19) ON FEBRUARY 22, 2003, AT 0851 PACIFIC STANDARD TIME, AN AEROSTAR RX-7 BALLOON, N6413N, COLLIDED WITH A POWER LINE WHILE MANEUVERING TO LAND IN A MEADOW NORTHWEST OF RENO, NEVADA. THE BALLOON, OWNED AND OPERATED BY THE PILOT UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF 14 CFR PART 91 OF THE FEDERAL AVIATION REGULATIONS, SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE. THE PRIVATE PILOT AND HIS TWO PASSENGERS WERE NOT INJURED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED FOR THE LOCAL AREA FLIGHT THAT DEPARTED FROM A NEARBY FIELD AT AN UNDETERMINED TIME. NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. A RESPONDING WASHOE COUNTY DEPUTY SHERIFF INTERVIEWED THE PILOT. ACCORDING TO THE OFFICER, THE PILOT SAID THAT HE WAS CROSSING A NORTH-SOUTH RIDGE LINE APPROACHING A LANDING SPOT IN A MEADOW. AS THE BALLOON FLEW OVER THE DESCENDING SLOPE, IT CROSSED A STREAM. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT HE THEN ENCOUNTERED A TERRAIN INDUCED SOUTHERLY AIR CURRENT, WHICH BLEW THE BALLOON INTO THE POWER LINES. (-23) ON FEBRUARY 22, 2003 AT 0851 LOCAL TIME, MR. HALICZER WAS MAKING AN APPROACH TO LAND IN AN AEROSTAR RX-7 HOT AIR BALLOON TO A FIELD SOUTH OF THE CITY OF RENO, NV. DURING THE LANDING THE BALLOON HIT POWER LINES, WITH SUB                                    STANTIAL DAMAGE TO THE BALLOON AND BASKET.

## 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 LAX03LA095](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX03LA095), Feb 22, 2003: Aerostar RX-7 (N6413N), Reno, NV, substantial damage. Probable cause: A sudden wind shift that forced the balloon to drift towards an obstruction, and the pilot's inability to perform an evasive maneuver in sufficient time to prevent a collision.

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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