# NTSB investigations: Balloon Works FIREFLY 8

NTSB aviation accident and incident investigations since 1962: the probable cause, findings, aircraft, crew, weather and docket of each, linked to the FAA registry and the FAA’s own reports.

## Latest cases

- [NTSB ERA16LA284](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA16LA284.md): Balloon Works FIREFLY8 · Northwood, NH · Accident · Serious injuries · Limited investigation · Final report · Aug 6, 2016 · N317W · No damage
  > The balloon pilot’s inadequate weather planning and improper decision to depart in reported increasing variable winds with nearby thunderstorms, which resulted in a subsequent hard landing and a serious passenger injury.
- [NTSB CEN11CA654](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN11CA654.md): Balloon Works Firefly 8 · Mingo, IA · Accident · Serious injuries · Data collection · Final report · Sep 17, 2011 · N3181A · No damage
  > The pilot’s failure to maintain control of the balloon’s descent during the landing, which resulted in the balloon having a hard landing in a ditch and causing a passenger to be seriously injured.
- [NTSB FTW00LA224](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW00LA224.md): Balloon Works Firefly 8 · Tulsa, OK · Accident · Serious injuries · Limited investigation · Final report · Aug 6, 2000 · N9091R · Minor damage
  > The passenger's failure to comply with the briefing administered by the pilot. Factors were the passenger's physical impairment due to an injury sustained during the initial ground impact and the high wind condition.
- [NTSB ATL99LA047](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL99LA047.md): Balloon Works AX-8 · Beech Island, SC · Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report · Feb 6, 1999 · N32877 · Destroyed
  > The pilot's failure to follow the balloon checklist that resulted in a ground fire that destroyed the balloon envelope.
- [NTSB LAX94LA244](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX94LA244.md): Balloon Works Firefly 8 · Acton, CA · Accident · Serious injuries · Limited investigation · Final report · Jun 5, 1994 · N9084D · Substantial damage
  > the pilot's improper in-flight planning and his misjudging the wind speed information. Contributing factors were the gusty winds and the lack of suitable terrain.
- [NTSB LAX90LA279](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX90LA279.md): Balloon Works Firefly 8 · Napa, CA · Accident · Serious injuries · Limited investigation · Final report · Aug 7, 1990 · N9023Z · No damage
  > The flight's encounter with a probable microburst weather phenomena with down drafts and winds beyond the performance capability of the Balloon.

## The whole list in SQL

Runs in DuckDB 1.2 or later on the release's Parquet files over HTTPS:

```sql
SELECT c."ntsbNumber", c."eventDate", c."eventType", c."eventCity", c."eventStateOrRegion", a.n_number, a."aircraftMake", a."aircraftModel", c."highestInjuryLevel", c."totalFatal", c."completionStatus", c.report_url
FROM 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_case_detail.parquet' c LEFT JOIN 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_aircrafts.parquet' a ON a.case_mkey = c."mKey" AND a.position = 1
WHERE c."mKey" IN (SELECT x.case_mkey FROM 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_aircrafts.parquet' x WHERE x.aircraft_model_code IN ('1050109'))
ORDER BY c."eventDate" DESC, c."ntsbNumber" DESC
```

This list as a web page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb?model=1050109

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.