# NTSB CEN09CA018: Cameron Balloons US A-105, N808SP, Albuquerque, NM, October 7, 2008 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Serious injuries · Data collection · Final report - Date: October 7, 2008, 14:00 local (21:00 UTC) - Place: Albuquerque, NM - Coordinates: 35.037223, -106.605552 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.0372&lon=-106.6056&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Landing-flare/touchdown: Loss of control on ground](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230) - Highest injury: Serious injuries - Injuries: 1 serious, 1 minor, 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report January 22, 2009 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Central Region - Parties: FAA/FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 69283 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CEN09CA018 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/69283/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN09CA018 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to maintain control of the balloon during landing. Contributing to the accident were the wind gusts. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Performance/control parameters](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062000): Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability · Not attained/maintained (probable cause); cases with it: [Cameron Balloons US A-105, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062000/cases.md?model=1880211), [All aircraft, 1,269 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062000/cases.md) - [Use of equip/info: aircraft control](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063040): Personnel issues › Task performance · Pilot (probable cause); cases with it: [Cameron Balloons US A-105, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063040/cases.md?model=1880211), [All aircraft, 9,295 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063040/cases.md) - [Wind: gusts](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03034045): Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena · Response/compensation (probable cause); cases with it: [Cameron Balloons US A-105, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03034045/cases.md?model=1880211), [All aircraft, 1,199 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03034045/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Landing-flare/touchdown: Dragged wing/rotor/float/other](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/093); cases with it: [Cameron Balloons US A-105, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/093/sequence.md?model=1880211), [All aircraft, 319 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/093/sequence.md) - [Landing-flare/touchdown: Loss of control on ground](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230) (defining event); cases with it: [Cameron Balloons US A-105, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230/sequence.md?model=1880211), [All aircraft, 4,585 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230/sequence.md) ## Analysis The commercial rated balloon pilot obtained a weather briefing prior to his departure as a participant in an international balloon festival. The weather briefing provided by festival officials included calm winds at the surface and a wind speed of 13 miles per hour aloft. The pilot and his passengers (his grandparents) departed and flew approximately five miles from their launch site at an altitude of 1,800 feet above ground level before they reached their destnation. The pilot reported that at the time they landed the winds were "gusty" on the surface and the balloon was moving approximately two miles per hour when the basket touched down on the ground. The balloon's basket dragged approximately 60 feet along the surface, became airborne again for approximately 150 feet, and then landed and came to a full stop. The pilot reported that his grandfather sustained a broken leg when the basket first contacted the ground. A Federal Aviation Administration inspector, who was working at the festival, reported that there were occassional wind gusts on the day of the accident, but the weather was mostly clear with calm winds. ## Factual narrative The commercial rated balloon pilot obtained a weather briefing prior to his departure as a participant in an international balloon festival. The weather briefing provided by festival officials included calm winds at the surface and a wind speed of 13 miles per hour aloft. The pilot and his passengers (his grandparents) departed and flew approximately five miles from their launch site at an altitude of 1,800 feet above ground level before they reached their destnation. The pilot reported that at the time they landed the winds were "gusty" on the surface and the balloon was moving approximately two miles per hour when the basket touched down on the ground. The balloon's basket dragged approximately 60 feet along the surface, became airborne again for approximately 150 feet, and then landed and came to a full stop. The pilot reported that his grandfather sustained a broken leg when the basket first contacted the ground. A Federal Aviation Administration inspector, who was working at the festival, reported that there were occassional wind gusts on the day of the accident, but the weather was mostly clear with calm winds. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N808SP](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N808SP), registered now, S/N 5918 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: CAMERON BALLOONS US A-105 - Registry model: [Cameron Balloons US A-105](https://openairdocs.org/model/cameron-balloons-us-a-105) (registry code 1880211) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [NONE](https://openairdocs.org/engine/none) (registry code 00000, none) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Balloon - Serial number: 5918 - Damage: No damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Operator: Tierney Ronald C - Registered owner: Tierney Ronald C - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Departed: Albuquerque, NM - Destination: Albuquerque, NM - Airport: None ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 26; injuries: none; commercial; flight hours: 135 total, 95 in this make and model ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20081007848969A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20081007848969A), Oct 7, 2008: Camron A105, Rio Rancho, NM, No damage. (-23) On October 7, 2008 at approximately 0930 local time, passenger aboard a cameron A-105 hot air balloon suffered a broken femur during a hard landing in… 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. --- 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.