- Date
- February 3, 1990, 09:30 local (16:30 UTC)
- Place
- Littleton, CO
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N29675Cameron N105
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 29, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Case key
- 17885
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
Inadequate compensation for the wind conditions by the pilot in command.
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
During an approach to landing, the balloon pilot estimated that the wind had grown stronger than anticipated. He said he attempted to spill air to increase the rate of descent by use of the red line, but it slipped through his gloved hand. He said the balloon was carried 300 feet farther than the planned touchdown point, where the envelope draped over power lines. He said the wire contact tore a vertical rip several feet long in the envelope. The pilot and passenger exited the gondola without injury.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N29675
- Reported as
- Cameron N105
- Category
- Balloon
- Serial number
- 5064
- Engine
- unknown
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Myles A. Prysby
- Departed
- NONE
- Destination
- NONE
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
- 31
- Certificate
- Student
- Flight hours
- 51 total · 21 in this make and model · 40 as pilot in command · 8 in the last 90 days · 2 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 180° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- -0 °F, dew point -0 °F