# NTSB LAX06CA046: Cameron Balloons N-180, N4506B, Rancho Santa Fe, CA, November 26, 2005

- Type: NTSB accident investigation
- Classification: Accident · No injuries · Data collection · Final report
- Date: November 25, 2005, 16:36 local (Nov 26, 2005, 00:36 UTC)
- Place: Rancho Santa Fe, CA
- Coordinates: 32.988056, -117.205558
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=32.9881&lon=-117.2056&mi=10
- Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping)
- Highest injury: No injuries
- Injuries: 12 uninjured
- Status: Completed, report March 28, 2006
- Report: Approved by Office Director
- Parties: Federal Aviation Administration
- NTSB case key (mKey): 62886
- NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=LAX06CA046
- NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/62886/pdf
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX06CA046

## 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

In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf).

- In flight collision with object, landing
  - fuel supply - inadvertent deactivation, pilot in command (cause)
  - object - tree(s)
  - descent - not corrected, pilot in command (cause)

## 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](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N4506B-2010-03-29), registration cancelled 2010-03-29, S/N 6308, built 2002 (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: Cameron Balloons N-180
- Registry model: [Cameron Balloons US N-180](https://openairdocs.org/model/cameron-balloons-us-n-180) (registry code 1880250) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: [NONE](https://openairdocs.org/engine/none) (registry code 00000, none) (OpenAirDocs)
- Category: Balloon
- Serial number: 6308
- Airframe hours: 233.1
- 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

## Flight crew

As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.

- Pilot; age 48; injuries: none; 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 (OpenAirDocs).

- [Accident 20051125029419A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20051125029419A), Nov 25, 2005: Camron N180, Rancho Santa F, CA, Substantial damage. (-23) Pilot stated that he encountered a downdraft during his landing attempt and hit a 60 foot tree that was on a golf course in an upscale neighborhood of…

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.