- Date
- October 3, 1982, 09:47 local (15:47 UTC)
- Place
- Albuquerque, NM
- Injuries
- 4 fatal, 3 serious, 1 minor, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N9606AThunder Balloons AX9-140
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report October 3, 1983
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19821003052449A
- Case key
- 69725
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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
After what was described as a normal landing liquid propane began escaping. The propane vaporized & was ignited engulfing the gondola in flames. Four pax exited the gondola while it was still on the ground & the last survivor exitedat about 25 ft as the balloon began rising. The remaining 4 pax began jumping or falling from the gondola at about 100 ft with the last exiting at an estimated 600 ft AGL. The balloon continued to rise & at about 1,000 ft two propane tanks exploded. The owner/pilot had installed 6 propane cylinders. A portion of one tee fitting was determined to be brass, & according to a metallurgical report the hoses used to manifold the propane cylinders were determined to be rubber covered by a woven fabric. Only cadium plated steel fittings & wire mesh reinforced hoses were recommended by thunder balloons,ltd. & at no time would brass fittings & non-wire mesh hoses be recommended by them.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9606A
- Reported as
- Thunder Balloons AX9-140
- Category
- Balloon
- Serial number
- 317
- Airframe hours
- 60
- Engine
- unknown
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Fire
- Both
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Joseph A. Gonzales
- Registered owner
- Thunder Pacific
- Departed
- Albuquerque, NM
- Destination
- Albuquerque, NM
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 41
- Certificate
- Private
- Medical
- Unknown
- Flight hours
- 65 total · 45 in this make and model · 30 in the last 90 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 360° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 50 statute miles
- Temperature
- 154 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.