Cameron 0-105 N2925L accident near Piermont, New Hampshire

Probable cause

The balloon pilot’s delay in relighting the burner, which resulted in a hard landing and his ejection from the balloon.

NTSB analysis

The balloon departed with the pilot and four passengers for a commercial sightseeing flight. About 45 minutes into the flight, the burner’s pilot light extinguished. The pilot told the passengers that he had to switch propane tanks; however, he could not locate the striker to relight the burner. The balloon started to descend while the pilot searched the balloon basket for the striker, and several minutes later, he located a backup striker. The balloon had descended close to the ground by the time the pilot re-lit the pilot light, and he could not get the balloon to climb before impacting a field.

One passenger and the pilot were thrown from the basket upon impact. The balloon then started to rise, and the pilot’s foot was trapped between the balloon attach rope and the basket frame. The pilot untangled his foot but remained hanging below the basket for about 1 mile before falling to a field and suffering fatal injuries. The remaining passengers contacted ground support personnel via a handheld radio and received instructions on how to operate the balloon controls in preparation for landing. The balloon traveled about another 3.5 miles before landing in trees.

Examination of the balloon did not reveal any preimpact anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. Had the pilot been able to relight the burner in a timely manner, it was likely that he would have been able to sufficiently arrest the balloon’s descent rate to prevent the hard landing.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA21LA290 for the full record.