Aerostar RX 8 N3639Q

Summary

On 21 July 2006 at about 00:30 local time, a Aerostar RX 8 registered N3639Q was involved in an accident near Claremont, Minnesota, United States. 3 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

21 July 2006 at 00:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Claremont, Minnesota, United States

Coordinates

44.0396, -92.9893

Aircraft

Aerostar RX 8

Registration

N3639Q

Category

Balloon

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Other Work Use

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Dodge Center → Clairmont

Aircraft damage

Not recorded

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CHI06LA208

1 person was seriously injured.

The procedure not followed by the passenger during landing and the inadequate supervision of the passenger by the pilot during landing. A contributing factors were the barbed wire fence.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

A passenger sustained a broken ankle upon landing during a balloon flight. The balloon struck a barbed wire fence and then impacted a road bank. The passenger stated that during the landing, the chase crew yelled out there was a fence. The pilot stated that the passenger was observed not following landing instructions by not facing the direction of travel but her left side was facing the direction of travel. She stated that they had been taught during the class to face the direction of travel with knees flexed for landing. She stated that there was not enough room in the basket with her husband standing behind her and the pilot standing to her left. She was holding onto a rope handle in the balloon and was trying to move a water bottle on the floor of the basket with her left foot at the time of the landing.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.