# Accident 20210420005259A: Firefly Balloons 2010 Inc FIREFLY 12B, Pagosa Springs, CO, April 20, 2021

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: April 20, 2021, 08:30 local time
- Place: Pagosa Springs, CO
- Damage: No damage
- Phase of flight: Landing: Touchdown
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 37.2723° N, 107.0869° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=37.2723&lon=-107.0869&mi=10
- Aircraft: N3016R, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N3016R) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Firefly Balloons 2010 FIREFLY 12B (registry code 1050167, https://openairdocs.org/model/firefly-balloons-2010-firefly-12b) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: NONE (registry code 00000, https://openairdocs.org/engine/none) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: FIREFLY BALLOONS 2010 INC FIREFLY 12B
- Reported engine: NONE NONE
- People aboard: 11
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 1
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 416 total
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN21LA210](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN21LA210) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20210420005259A

## Narrative

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

ON 04/20/2021 AT APPROXIMATELY 0830 MDT, N3016R A COMMERCIALLY OPERATED BALLOON, LANDED IN A FIELD NEAR PAGOSA SPRINGS, CO.  THE BALLOON HAD ONE PILOT AND TEN PASSENGERS. THE PILOT STATED THAT IMMEDIATELY AFTER LANDING AN ELEVEN YEAR OLD PASSENGER COMPLAINED OF A SORE WRIST.  THE PASSENGER WAS TAKEN TO AN URGENT CARE AND DIAGNOSED WITH A ?CLEAN X-RAY? AND A ?SEVERE WRIST SPRAIN.?  NO OTHER PASSENGERS WERE INJURED, AND THERE WAS NO DAMAGE TO THE BALLOON.

ON 05/04/2021 THE PILOT WAS CONTACTED BY THE PASSENGERS MOTHER TO REPORT HER DAUGHTER HAD RETURNED TO THE URGENT CARE FOR ANOTHER X-RAY WHICH NOW SHOWED A FRACTURE OF THE WRIST, AND THEY CASTED HER DAUGHTERS ARM.

ON 05/05/2021 AT 1002 MDT, THE PILOT OF N3016R CONTACTED THE FAA REGIONAL OPERATIONS CENTER TO REPORT THE INJURY TO HIS PASSENGER.

## 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 CEN21LA210](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN21LA210), Apr 20, 2021: Firefly Balloons 2010 Firefly 12B-010 (N3016R), Pagosa Springs, CO, no damage. Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to properly control the balloon during a steep approach that resulted in a hard landing and a 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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