- Date
- November 25, 2005, 16:36 local (Nov 26, 2005, 00:36 UTC)
- Place
- Rancho Santa Fe, CA
- Injuries
- 12 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N4506BCameron Balloons N-180
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 28, 2006
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20051125029419A
- Case key
- 62886
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 inadvertent deactivation of the number 2 burner, which resulted in an increased rate of descent and a collision with a tree short of the intended landing zone.
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 balloon collided with a tree while attempting to land during a revenue sightseeing flight. The pilot said that he was descending to land in a golf course at the time of the accident and collided with a tree short of the intended landing zone after inadvertently shutting off the number 2 burner. The crossover valve for that burner is in close proximity to the burner handle. About 30 feet above the ground, the balloon collided with an eucalyptus tree. The balloon envelope tore slowly enough to safely drop the basket to the ground. None of the 11 passengers and crew onboard were injured.
Factual narrative
On November 25, 2005, about 1636 Pacific standard time, a Cameron N-180, N4506B, struck a tree while attempting to land in a field near Rancho Santa Fe, California. Silvertop, Inc., operated the balloon under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The commercial pilot, 1 crewmember, and 10 passengers were not injured; the balloon sustained substantial damage. The local for hire sightseeing flight departed Del Mar, California, about 1608, with a planned destination of Rancho Santa Fe. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed.
In a written statement to the National Transportation Safety Board investigator, the pilot said that he was descending to land in a golf course at the time of the accident and collided with a tree short of the intended landing zone after inadvertently shutting off the number 2 burner. The crossover valve for that burner is in close proximity to the burner handle. About 30 feet above the ground, the balloon collided with an eucalyptus tree. The balloon envelope tore slowly enough to safely drop the basket to the ground. No injuries were reported when the pilot interviewed the passengers immediately following the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4506B
- Reported as
- Cameron Balloons N-180
- Category
- Balloon
- Serial number
- 6308
- Airframe hours
- 233.1
- Engine
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · February 1, 2005 · 60.25 hours before
- Departed
- Del Mar, CA
- Destination
- Rancho Santa Fe, CA
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
- 48
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Last flight review
- September 1, 2005
- Flight hours
- 606 total · 300 in this make and model · 5 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 300° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 6 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 1,500 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 149 °F, dew point 140 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.