# Accident 20040724028349A: Raven RX7, Wausua, WI, July 24, 2004

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 24, 2004, 19:15 local time
- Place: Wausua, WI
- Phase of flight: Descent
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 44.9261° N, 89.6322° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=44.9261&lon=-89.6322&mi=10
- Aircraft: N7144Y, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N7144Y-2023-02-04) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Aerostar International RX-7 (registry code 7487007, https://openairdocs.org/model/aerostar-international-rx-7) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: NONE (registry code 00000, https://openairdocs.org/engine/none) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: RAVEN RX7
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 182 total, 170 in this make and model, 20 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI04CA191](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI04CA191) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20040724028349A

## Narrative

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

(-23) BALLOON WAS LAUNCHED DURING CALM WIND CONDITIONS APPROXIMATELY 5 MILES WEST OF WAUSAU, WI. SHORTLY AFTER LAUNCH, THERMALS AND WIND SHEAR WERE ENCOUNTERED WHICH CAUSED THE BALLOON TO CLIMB AND DESCEND AT APPROXIMATELY 800 FEET PER MINUTE. PILOT ELECTED TO MAKE A PRECAUTIONARY LANDING. AFTER LANDING, A 20 KNOT GUST OF WIND PARTIALLY DEFLATED THE ENVELOPE AND LIFTED THE BALLOON 200 FEET INTO THE AIR. THIS WAS FOLLOWED BY A HARD LANDING IN A HAY FIELD WHICH BROKE THE PILOT'S RIGHT ANKLE. THE AIRCRAFT WAS THEN DRAGGED APPROXIMATELY 1/4 MILE BY THE WIND BEFORE COMING TO A FINAL STOP. THERE WAS NO INDICATION DURING THE PILOT'S WEATHER BRIEFING THAT HAZARDOUS WIND CONDITIONS EXISTED OR WERE FORECAST TO EXIST DURING THE FLIGHT.

## 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 CHI04CA191](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI04CA191), Jul 25, 2004: Aerostar RX-7 (N7144Y), Wausau, WI, no damage. Probable cause: The pilot's inability to compensation for the turbulence and wind conditions. Contributing factors were the variable winds and the turbulence.

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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