- Date
- June 11, 1989, 07:17 local (11:17 UTC)
- Place
- Garner, NC
- Injuries
- 3 fatal
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N37141Balloon Works Firefly 8B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 15, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890611014999A
- Case key
- 7895
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
Improper planning/decision by the pilot, and his delay in initiating a climb as the balloon converged on the tv tower.
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.
In flight collision with object
In-flight planning/decision - improperCause
Object - electrical tower
Climb - delayedCause
In flight collision with terrain/water
Aircraft
- Registration
- N37141
- Reported as
- Balloon Works Firefly 8B
- Category
- Balloon
- Serial number
- F8B-030
- Airframe hours
- 341
- Engine
- Unknown UNKNOWN, unknown
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Other work use · Part 91
- Operator
- The Balloon Plantation, Inc
- Registered owner
- Balloon Plantation Inc
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 14, 1988 · 24 hours before
- Departed
- Knighdale, NC
N37141Registration cancelled Dec 22, 2014 · Balloon Works FIREFLY 8BAirframe modelBalloon Works FIREFLY 8BEngine modelNONE
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
- Age
- 45
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Medical
- Unknown, Unknown
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 551 total · 292 in this make and model · 537 as pilot in command · 17 in the last 90 days · 9 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 10° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 5 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 63 °F, dew point 57 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- RDU, 17 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.