- Date
- July 2, 1985, 19:40 local (Jul 3, 1985, 00:40 UTC)
- Place
- Owensboro, KY
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N1534CBalloon Works Firefly 7
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19850702031389A
- Case key
- 6822
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
Pilot launched balloon from college campus with two pax. Flew for 35 minutes. During flight he radioed ground crew which was at landing site. During descent pilot saw utility wires previously unnoticed. Parachute was ventd to increase descent rate and avoid wires. Balloon landed hard and bounced into wires. Electrical arcing severed basket cables dropping basket 20 feet to ground.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1534C
- Reported as
- Balloon Works Firefly 7
- Category
- Balloon
- Serial number
- 10208
- Airframe hours
- 195
- Engine
- unknown
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Hugh B. Gilbert
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · April 1, 1985 · 10 hours before
- Airport
- Unknown
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Flight hours
- 208 total · 208 in this make and model · 191 as pilot in command · 8 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 270° at 5 knots, gusting 8
- Visibility
- 12 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point -0 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.