Airborne America AX9-140 N970TC accident near Homestead, Florida

Probable cause

The pilot's decision to operate the balloon at low altitude near obstructions, structures, and powerlines, which resulted in the balloon contacting powerlines. Contributing to the accident was the Federal Aviation Administration's inadequate oversight of balloon tour operators.

NTSB analysis

The commercial pilot who owned the hot air balloon tour company departed on a revenue tour flight with eight passengers onboard. The pilot reported that his preflight review of weather conditions indicated light wind at the surface and aloft. After about 50 minutes of flight, the pilot was approaching a field for landing when, while crossing overhead a set of power lines, the balloon encountered a “downdraft” and entered a “rapid descent.” The basket contacted the power lines, then slid to the ground. The pilot did not have current flight review, and the balloon’s registration had expired.

Several passengers provided statements in which they recounted that, throughout the flight, the balloon was flying low enough that they could easily communicate with people on the ground, and that the basket contacted trees twice and a power pole once during the flight. After contacting the trees, the pilot laughed and stated that he was “cleaning the bottom of the basket.”

Examination of the balloon’s flightpath indicated that after departure, the balloon tracked downwind at low altitude (below 500 feet) near multiple obstacles, structures, and powerlines for most of the flight, and although the pilot reported that a downdraft occurred, the passengers did not report it, and there was no indication of any thunderstorms, convective activity, or high winds around the time of the accident.

The balloon impacted the power lines with the lower part of the envelope and flying wires that held the basket to the canopy. The balloon came to rest with the envelope draped over the power lines and the basket in a small group of trees directly below the lines, 10 to 12 feet above the ground. Electrical arcing occurred and showers of sparks flew on and around the passengers. The accident resulted in serious injury to two of the passengers, and minor injury to four of the passengers.

The events of the accident flight displayed a pattern of poor decision-making by the pilot both before and during the flight; including his decision to operate the balloon without a valid registration, his decision to operate the flight without a valid flight review, and his decision to fly the balloon at very low altitudes in proximity to obstructions, structures, and powerlines, which increased the potential of collision. The Federal Aviation Administration had conducted no surveillance of the operator/pilot before the accident. Given the circumstances of this accident, it is likely that with a more robust system of oversight and surveillance of balloon operators, the Federal Aviation Administration could have identified the accident pilot/operator as a potential safety risk and taken steps to mitigate this risk.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA20LA094 for the full record.