Aerostar RX-9 N9116M
14 June 2009 · Marathon City, Wisconsin, United States · Serious injuries
Summary
On 14 June 2009 at about 01:00 local time, a Aerostar RX-9 registered N9116M, operated by Handcrafted Furniture Balloon Rides LLC, was involved in an accident near Marathon City, Wisconsin, United States. 5 people were on board and one was seriously injured, 3 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 01:00
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Marathon City, Wisconsin, United States
- Coordinates
- 44.9756, -89.8164
- Aircraft
- Aerostar RX-9
- Registration
- N9116M
- Category
- Balloon
- Operator
- Handcrafted Furniture Balloon Rides LLC
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Other Work Use
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Marathon City → Marathon City
- Aircraft damage
- Minor
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- CEN09CA358
People
1 person was seriously injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
Probable cause
A hard landing as a result of unexpected high winds and gusts.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The pilot and four paying passengers departed in a free air balloon. The local area surface weather observations indicated that the winds were consistently from the northwest at 6 – 8 knots. Around the time of the balloon launch, the winds were observed to be 300 degrees at 6 knots. About 3 minutes after liftoff, the balloon was heading 180 degrees at 10 knots about 800 feet above ground level. The winds on the ground suddenly increased to about 25 mph, and the balloon experienced strong wind gusts. The pilot reported that about 9 minutes after takeoff, a big wind gust “caved in” half the balloon and the mouth was “almost shut.” The pilot decided to get the balloon on the ground at the nearest suitable field, and instructed the passengers to prepare for a hard landing. The balloon hit hard, bounced in the air about 30 feet, and traveled about 200 feet before it hit the ground again. The balloon tipped on its side and one of the passengers partially fell out of the basket, but was restrained by the pilot and a passenger. The wind dragged the basket about 125 feet where the passenger fell out the basket and into a ditch. The basket was dragged about another 60 feet before it came to a stop in another field. The passenger was seriously injured. The balloon sustained minor damage.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Aerostar RX-9 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 Feb 1999 | Aerostar RX-9 | Peoria, Arizona, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 Aug 2009 | Rewey William M CH 801 | Cottage Grove, Wisconsin, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 22 Apr 2009 | Laseure SONERAI II | Grantsburg, Wisconsin, United States | Michael Shute | Fatal | 1 |
| 16 Jul 2009 | Cessna A188B | Suring, Wisconsin, United States | Nicolet Air LLC | No injuries | - |
| 3 May 2009 | American AA-1 | Cumberland, Wisconsin, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 25 Jul 2009 | Pilgrim Samuel W Jr RV-6 | Oshkosh, Wisconsin, United States | Berry Damon R | No injuries | - |
| 26 Jul 2009 | Fisher RV-7A | Brodhead, Wisconsin, United States | - | No injuries | - |