# Accident 20200815009659A: Fricke B/Cuneo P RX-8, Albuquerque, NM, August 15, 2020

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 15, 2020, 08:00 local time
- Place: Albuquerque, NM
- Damage: No damage
- Phase of flight: Landing: Touchdown
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 35.1600° N, 106.5000° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.1600&lon=-106.5000&mi=10
- Aircraft: N900FC, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N900FC) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Fricke B/Cuneo P RX-8 (registry code 056239V, https://openairdocs.org/model/fricke-b-cuneo-p-rx-8) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: NONE (registry code 00000, https://openairdocs.org/engine/none) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: FRICKE B/CUNEO P RX-8
- Reported engine: NONE NONE
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 1
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 238 total, 58 in this make and model, 2 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB WPR20CA272](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR20CA272) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20200815009659A

## Narrative

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

ON 15 AUGUST 2020, AT 0800 MDT, A 2007 FRICKE B/CUNEO P EXPERMINENTAL-AMATEUR BUILT RX-8 LIGHTER-THAN-AIR BALLOON (N900FC) WITH AIRBORNE HEATER, REGISTERED TO ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^, EXPERIENCED A HIGH-SPEED HARD LANDING WITHIN THE CITY LIMITS OF ALBUQUERQUE, NM. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME, AND A VFR FLIGHT PLAN WAS NOT FILED. THE AIRCRAFT SUSTAINED NO DAMAGE, AND THE FAA CERTIFICATED PRIVATE PILOT WAS NOT INJURED. THE SINGLE PASSENGER EXPERIENCED A BROKEN ANKLE. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED IN RIO RANCHO, NM, AT 0715 MDT.

## 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 WPR20CA272](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR20CA272), Aug 15, 2020: Aerostar International RX 8 (N900FC), Albuquerque, NM, no damage. Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to maintain the proper descent rate during the balloon’s approach to a high-wind landing, which resulted in a hard landing and serious passenger injury.

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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