Head Balloons AX8-88 N4522E
5 July 2002 · Victor, Idaho, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 5 July 2002 at about 13:20 local time, a Head Balloons AX8-88 registered N4522E was involved in an accident near Victor, Idaho, United States. 3 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 13:20
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Victor, Idaho, United States
- Coordinates
- 43.5975, -111.1256
- Aircraft
- Head Balloons AX8-88
- Registration
- N4522E
- Category
- Balloon
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Victor → Victor
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- SEA02LA122
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain altitude/clearance from the power lines during the landing resulting in the balloon's impacting the wires. Contributing factors were the power lines and strong winds existent at the time.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The pilot of the Head Balloon AX8-88 hot air balloon reported that about 20 minutes after departure he encountered increasing westerly winds of 10 mph and decided to select an alternate landing site. During the approach one of the passengers called "power lines." The pilot, who was already applying burner, was unable to clear the lines and about 5-10 seconds later the upper supports of the basket contacted the power lines. One of the three wires fell away and the pilot attempted to stabilize the balloon as it remained in contact with the two remaining lines. The basket then came to rest on a highway in an upright attitude. The aviation surface weather observation taken shortly after the accident at Idaho Falls and located 42 nautical miles west-southwest reported winds from 200 degrees magnetic at 11 knots with winds gradually increasing in strength during the morning.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Head Balloons AX8 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 Aug 2004 | Head Balloons AX8-88 | Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 12 Jun 2006 | Head Balloons AX8-88 | Gretna, Nebraska, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 14 Apr 1997 | Head Balloons AX8-88 | San Diego, California, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 29 Jul 1995 | Head Balloons AX8-88 | Mesquite, Texas, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 12 Sep 2010 | Head Balloons AX8-88 | Ft. Wayne, Indiana, United States | Windswept Aeronauts Inc | Serious injuries | - |
| 18 Jun 2011 | Head Balloons AX8-88 | Summerdale, Alabama, United States | - | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 Aug 2002 | Piper PA-22/20 | Shearer, Idaho, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 25 Sep 2002 | Piper PA-28-180 | Yellow Pine, Idaho, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 12 Mar 2002 | Piper PA-31 | Atlanta, Idaho, United States | - | Fatal | 3 |
| 16 Jun 2002 | Stinson 108-1 | Heyburn, Idaho, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 17 Aug 2002 | Beechcraft C-35 | Nampa, Idaho, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 21 Sep 2002 | Cessna R172K | Salmon, Idaho, United States | - | No injuries | - |