Cameron A105 N1601A

Summary

On 14 July 1998 at about 23:45 local time, a Cameron A105 registered N1601A was involved in an accident near Howell, Michigan, United States. 5 people were on board and one was seriously injured. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

14 July 1998 at 23:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Howell, Michigan, United States

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Cameron A105

Registration

N1601A

Category

Balloon

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Business

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Not recorded

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CHI98LA253

1 person was seriously injured.

The pilot's failure to visually recognize hazards associated with meteorological phenomenon. A contributing factor was the weather condtion.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot stated that he had obtained two weather briefings from the Lansing Flight Service Station, one at 1430 and the second at 1745. The forecast indicated the winds to be 240 degrees at 10 knots until 2000 and then 220 degrees at 5 knots until 2200 with no convective activity for his flight area. The flight departed from Howell at 1930 with winds from the west at 8 knots. As the flight progressed, the pilot noticed dark clouds moving south towards his position. Approximately 15 minutes into the flight, he decided to find a place to land. At 300' agl, the wind changed to 180 degrees at 20 knots. The pilot said that he then noticed power lines in his new flight direction and elected to land in a soybean field rather than attempt to fly over them. He reported that he landed hard and was dragged approximately 100' at 15-20 knots.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.