# Accident 20080504857289A: Balwks FIREFLY715, Baton Rouge, LA, May 4, 2008

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 4, 2008, 07:30 local time
- Place: Baton Rouge, LA
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Landing
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 30.4507° N, 91.1546° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Baton Rouge, LA, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=30.4507&lon=-91.1546&mi=10
- Aircraft: N25663, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N25663-2018-09-13) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Balloon Works FIREFLY 7-15 (registry code 1050118, https://openairdocs.org/model/balloon-works-firefly-7-15) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: NONE (registry code 00000, https://openairdocs.org/engine/none) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: BALWKS FIREFLY715
- People aboard: 3
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 590 total, 570 in this make and model, 30 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20080504857289A

## Narrative

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

(-23)  ON MAY 4, 2008, A PILOT AND TWO PASSENGERS DEPARTED A PARK NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF FLANNERY AND GOODWOOD STREETS IN BATON ROUGE, LA.  APPROXIMATELY 20 MINUTES INTO THE FLIGHT, A CHANGE IN WIND DIRECTION CAUSED THE PILOT TO CHANGE HER POINT OF INTENDED LANDING.  THE CHANGE IN THE WIND DIRECTION RESULTED IN THE BALLOON HEADING TOWARD TWO TALL TOWERS (APPROXIMATELY 1,700 FEET AGL) SOUTH OF BATON ROUGE.  THE BALLOON ENCOUNTERED ADDITIONAL WIND SHEER ALOFT WHILE TRYING TO CLIMB OVER THE TOWERS.  THE WIND SHEER WAS ENOUGH TO UPSET THE BASKET AND CAUSE THE PASSENGERS TO FALL TO THE FLOOR OF THE BASKET.  THE PILOT INITIATED A STEEP DESCENT TO A FIELD OFF OF RIVER ROAD AS TO AVOID CROSSING THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER.  UPON LANDING IN A FIELD, THE DIRECTION OF THE WIND SHIFTED AND PUSHED THE BALLOON INTO A NEARBY TREE.  THE FABRIC ON THE ENVELOPE WAS TORN WHEN THE ENVELOPE SNAGGED ON THE TREE LIMBS.  THERE WERE NO INJURIES REPORTED.

## NTSB investigation

None matched to this report by aircraft and date. Search the NTSB's own records: https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-main-public/basic-search

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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