- Date
- October 4, 1998, 08:30 local (14:30 UTC)
- Place
- Albuquerque, NM
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 3 minor, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- No damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N1607GCameron N-120
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 19, 1999
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19981004038919A
- Case key
- 45110
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 balloon's encounter with unforecasted wind shear and the subsequent inadvertent collision with terrain. A factor was the pilot's inability to control the balloon's descent.
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
The pilot and his passengers went for a short ride at Albuquerque's Balloon Fiesta when he encountered wind shear. The pilot and a pilot rated passenger executed a burn to control the descent. The burn was unsuccessful. The balloon made a hard landing, and one passenger broke her leg. The balloon was not damaged in the landing, although the basket did tip over while the pilot was attempting to deflate the balloon.
Factual narrative
On October 4, 1998, approximately 0830 mountain daylight time, a Cameron N-120 balloon, N1607G, was not damaged when it collided with terrain near Albuquerque, New Mexico. The commercial pilot was not injured; however, three passengers received minor injuries and one passenger received serious injuries. The balloon was being operated by the owner under Title 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local flight which originated approximately 30 minutes before the accident. No flight plan had been filed.
According to the pilot's accident report, he and his passengers went for a short ride at Albuquerque's Balloon Fiesta when he encountered wind shear. The pilot and a pilot rated passenger executed a burn to control the descent. The burn was unsuccessful. The balloon made a hard landing and one passenger broke her leg. The balloon was not damaged in the landing, although the basket did tip over while the pilot was attempting to deflate the balloon.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N1607G
- Reported as
- Cameron N-120
- Category
- Balloon
- Serial number
- 5930
- Airframe hours
- 271
- Engine
- unknown
- Damage
- No damage
- Flight
- Part 91
- Registered owner
- Thomas W. Gough
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 7, 1998 · 48 hours before
- Departed
- ABQ · NM
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
- 56
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Unknown
- Flight hours
- 1,850 total · 296 in this make and model · 1,785 as pilot in command · 28 in the last 90 days · 7 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 20° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.