- Date
- August 10, 1985, 20:00 local (Aug 11, 1985, 01:00 UTC)
- Place
- Shawnee, KS
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 3 uninjured
- Damage
- No damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N40468Balloon Works Firefly 7
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19850810041639A
- Case key
- 34007
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
The commercial balloon plt was giving a ride to three paying passengers. Plt stated that during the landing apch higher than normal winds were present so he briefed the passengers to lean against the side of the basket. He stated that he pulled the deflation line when the basket was 3 ft AGL. One passenger got her arm under the side of the basket as it was skidding and received lacerations. After she was taken to the hospital, she was found to have two compressed vertebrae.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N40468
- Reported as
- Balloon Works Firefly 7
- Category
- Balloon
- Serial number
- 7902
- Airframe hours
- 320
- Engine
- unknown
- Damage
- No damage
- Flight
- Part 91
- Registered owner
- Ray M. Ditirro
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · July 18, 1985 · 7 hours before
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
- Certificates
- Commercial, Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Unknown
- Flight hours
- 534 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Wind
- 135° at 8 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.