- Date
- September 15, 1991, 19:20 local (Sep 16, 1991, 02:20 UTC)
- Place
- Redmond, WA
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 1 minor, 2 uninjured
- Damage
- No damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N6544CRaven S-60A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 5, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910915042789A
- Case key
- 41547
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 failure to maintain the proper rate of descent. A factor contributing to the accident was unfavorable winds.
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
While executing a landing in an open field, the balloon encountered unfavorable winds resulting in an increased sink rate. The pilot did not adjust for the balloon's increased sink rate in time to prevent a hard landing during which one passenger suffered a broken ankle and subsequent hospitalization in excess of 48 hours.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6544C
- Reported as
- Raven S-60A
- Category
- Balloon
- Serial number
- S60A-3072
- Engine
- unknown
- Damage
- No damage
- Flight
- Part 91
- Operator
- Roy Wood
- Registered owner
- Roy Wood
- Departed
- Woodenville, WA
- Destination
- Redmond, WA
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
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine sea, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Flight hours
- 1,064 total · 164 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 360° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 75 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- -0 °F, dew point -0 °F
- Observed at
- PAE, 15 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.