- Date
- April 20, 2021, 08:30 local (14:30 UTC)
- Place
- Pagosa Springs, CO
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 10 uninjured
- Damage
- No damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N3016RFirefly Balloons 2010 Firefly 12B-010
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Hard landing
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20210420005259A
- Case key
- 103037
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
The pilot’s failure to properly control the balloon during a steep approach that resulted in a hard landing and a serious passenger injury.
Findings · 2
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot reported that he and 10 passengers were landing following a 30 minute flight. The balloon had to clear powerlines along a road to land in a field and the pilot had to land the balloon before it encountered trees and a row of bushes at the end of the field. The pilot briefed the passengers on the landing position and procedures and descended to the field. He landed the balloon firm so that it would not move closer to the trees and bushes. The pilot reported that immediately after landing, one of the passengers complained that her wrist was sore. During a medical examination after the accident, it was determined that she sustained a fractured wrist.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3016R
- Reported as
- Firefly Balloons 2010 Firefly 12B-010
- Category
- Balloon
- Serial number
- F12B-010
- Built
- 2012
- Airframe hours
- 581.8
- Damage
- No damage
- Flight
- Other work use · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Balloon; Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 10, 2021
- Equipment
- Handheld GPS
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
- 23
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Seat
- None
- Flight hours
- 416.7 total · 356.7 in this make and model · 376 as pilot in command · 32 in the last 90 days · 16 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 120° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 41 °F, dew point 12 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.03 inHg
- Observed at
- KPSO, 2 nm away
- METAR
- METAR KPSO 201455Z AUTO 12003KT 10SM CLR 05/M11 A3003 RMK AO2 T00511113=
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.