Cameron Balloon A-210 N30606
28 October 2001 · Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States · Serious injuries
Summary
On 28 October 2001 at about 15:45 local time, a Cameron Balloon A-210 registered N30606 was involved in an accident near Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States. 11 people were on board and one was seriously injured, 7 had minor injuries. The aircraft was slightly damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 15:45
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
- Coordinates
- 35.1902, -106.4991
- Aircraft
- Cameron Balloon A-210
- Registration
- N30606
- Category
- Balloon
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Aerial Observation
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Albuquerque → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Minor
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- FTW02LA025
People
1 person was seriously injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 3 |
Probable cause
the pilot's excessive descent rate during the landing approach, which resulted in a hard landing. Contributing factors were the high wind conditions and the lack of suitable terrain for the landing.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The pilot obtained a weather briefing prior to the hot-air balloon flight. The pilot reported that during the initial part of the flight, the wind was "light as forecasted." During the approach to landing, the pilot noticed the "winds starting to increase varying greatly in direction." The landing sites were "minimal," and she elected to land in a field. She briefed her passengers for a "steep approach/short field landing." As the balloon reached trees upwind from the landing site, the pilot pulled the deflation port, and warned her passengers that the landing was going to be "very hard." She added that as the balloon passed over the tree line, "it felt like we were being pushed to the ground at a greater descent than I expected." The balloon subsequently impacted the ground hard. The wind in the local area was reported as 120 degrees at 3 knots. The pilot reported the wind from 140 to 200 degrees at 15-20 knots.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Jun 2001 | Cameron Balloons N-210 | Rio Rancho, New Mexico, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 25 Aug 2001 | North American SNJ-5 | Raton, New Mexico, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 6 Mar 2001 | Cessna 172F | Clovis, New Mexico, United States | Eastern New Mexico Flight Academy | No injuries | - |
| 27 Jul 2001 | Cessna 172N | Farmington, New Mexico, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 12 May 2001 | 1977 Colfer-Chan STEEN SKYBOLT | Gallup, New Mexico, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 26 Oct 2001 | Beechcraft 58 | Farmington, New Mexico, United States | - | No injuries | - |