- Date
- March 2, 2026, 07:20 local (14:20 UTC)
- Place
- Casa Grande, AZ
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 12 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N261RRLindstrand 260A
- Defining event
- Enroute-cruise: Collision with terr/obj (non-CFIT)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 21, 2026
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- FAA Scottsdale FSDO
- FAA report
- 20260302004709A
- Case key
- 202595
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 hot air balloon’s encounter with downdraft wind conditions in mountainous terrain and subsequent impact with terrain.
Findings · 2
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot of the hot air balloon reported that while conducting a sight-seeing flight with multiple passengers, the balloon approached a mountain where it encountered downdrafts, causing the balloon to sink and its ground speed to increase. The pilot attempted but was unable to arrest the sink rate using the balloon’s propane flame burners. The pilot directed the passengers to sit down in the basket, as they had been briefed prior to the flight. The passenger basket impacted a rock on the mountain terrain, incurring substantial damage to a structural wooden skid and a structural metal tube. The basket then became airborne again and the pilot continued the flight to a safe landing zone. According to the pilot, a passenger who remained standing during the accident sequence received a minor injury. The pilot reported there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the balloon that precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N261RR
- Reported as
- Lindstrand 260A
- Category
- Balloon
- Serial number
- 5520
- Built
- 2012
- Airframe hours
- 655
- Engine
- N/A, none
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Monahan Todd J
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Balloon
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 1, 2026 · 35 hours before
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Equipment
- Handheld GPS
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
- 57
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Medical
- Class 2, Unknown
- Last flight review
- March 5, 2025
- Seat
- None
- Restraint
- None
- Flight hours
- 1,755 total · 1,200 in this make and model · 1,755 as pilot in command · 35 in the last 90 days · 35 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 80° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 57 °F, dew point 30 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.94 inHg
- Observed at
- KCGZ, 9 nm away
- METAR
- METAR KCGZ 021356Z AUTO 08005KT 10SM CLR 14/M01 A2994 RMK AO2 SLP130 T01391011 $=
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on May 21, 2026, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 12.9 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.