FTW96LA067

During landing from a commercial air tour flight, the balloon hit a ditch and bounced back into the air. One passenger fell from the basket. The balloon was relanded and dragged about 50 feet before it was deflated. Wind speed at the time of the occurrence was reported by the pilot to be 8 to 10 knots.

On November 26, 1995, at 0800 central standard time, a General Balloon Corporation AX-6, N25083, landed hard near Houston, Texas. There was no damage to the balloon and one passenger sustained serious injuries. The pilot and second passenger were not injured. The flight was a commercial air tour flight operating under Title 14 CFR Part 91. No flight plan was filed for this local area flight and weather conditions at the time were visual meteorological conditions.

According to the injured passenger, he and his wife were taking an air tour flight in the Houston area. When the balloon hit trees during landing, the injured passenger reported he fell from the basket and sustained serious back injuries.

Neither the pilot nor the operator reported the accident and knowledge about the event became known on December 13, 1995, when the injured passenger contacted the Federal Aviation Administration Flight Standards District Office, in Houston, Texas.

In a statement attached to NTSB Form 6120.1/2 (Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report) the pilot stated the following: "The wind speed had picked up to 8-10 knots. I warned the passengers that the landing was going to be hard, and to hold on. The balloon cleared a power line on approach to landing. I thought that we were going to hit a small tallow tree but I passed to the side of it. I added heat to the balloon to control decent. The balloon hit the side of a small ditch, and ricocheted back in the air around 50-75 feet. The next thing I knew was my female passenger calling me, this is when I discovered that my male passenger was hanging out of the basket by his knees. I attempted to get him back in the basket but at his suggestion, I turned my attention to the balloon. I added heat, but I wanted to keep the balloon descending, flying on further was in my opinion not an option. The balloon started to descend again and on landing again my male passenger was knocked off the basket. With his weight removed the balloon ascended again to about 30 to 40 feet and again descended, this time when it landed it stayed on the ground. After a drag of 50 feet the balloon came to rest and deflated."

In addition, the pilot said that he thought the 911 dispatchers, which were called due to his passengers serious injuries, had reported the event to the FAA so he did not notify them.