NYC08FA307

The separation of a portion of a fuel fitting during a hard landing resulting in release of fuel and a fire in the balloons basket area. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's failure to follow the manufacturer's published procedures to shut down the fuel system prior to landing and the operator's installation of a third fuel tank and the fuel fitting that separated during the hard landing.

Prior to the flight the pilot was observed expressing concerns over the wind direction that would have them track toward Phoenixville. While in flight the pilot was in communication with ground personnel and he did not mention any trouble. The pilot told several of the passengers that the wind was taking them in the direction of Phoenixville and the flight was going to be "cut short." One passenger reported that the balloon "headed to the ground too fast," and another passenger was told by the pilot "don't get out under any circumstances." The balloon basket struck the tops of pine trees that surrounded the field in which they were trying to land, impacted the ground "very hard," bounced, tilted toward one side, bounced again, up righted, then tilted over, and came to rest on the side of the basket containing the fuel cylinders. Several passengers reported immediately after the first bounce the heat inside the basket was "extremely intense," and the pilot had told everyone to "get out." Fire was present in the basket area. Several passengers reported having difficulty exiting since several of the passengers had fallen on top of each other. Examination showed a fuel fitting had separated the fuel delivery system. Components from the fuel delivery system were submitted to the Safety Board Materials Laboratory for analysis. The material of the fitting body and female end of the fitting was consistent with brass and was fractured due to overstress. The manufacturer's checklist requires that "immediately before touchdown, turn off the pilot lights and if possible close the liquid valves and vent the fuel lines." One valve was in the full open position after the accident. The balloon had been modified by the operator by installation of a third fuel tank and the fitting that was found separated. The mechanic that performed the last inspection on the balloon reported that the owner utilized three different manufacturer's fuel tanks.

HISTORY OF FLIGHT On September 7, 2008, at 1836 eastern daylight time (EDT), a Lindstrand Balloons USA Model 150A, N844LB, was substantially damaged by fire during landing. The certificated commercial pilot was fatally injured, four passengers were seriously injured, and three passengers sustained minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the flight which departed from an empty lot approximately 5 miles from the accident location. The sightseeing flight was conducted under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. One of the passenger's video taped the set-up and preflight of the balloon. The pilot was seen releasing, on two separate occasions, a "black helium type" balloon, known as "pible," and watching their direction of travel, connecting the hoses to the tank valves, routing the hoses up the side of the basket to the burner, and testing the burner as part of his preflight actions. The video also showed the inflation of the envelope utilizing a portable circular fan, which was the procedure required during the inflation process. The operator utilized some of the passengers to assist in the process, by having them hold the envelope open during the inflation process. Numerous passengers reported that after the balloon envelope was inflated the ground personnel required the seven passengers to "expeditiously" get in to the two compartment basket. During this process there were two passengers in the front compartment with the pilot and five in the rear compartment. The ground personnel moved one of the passengers from the rear to the forward compartment. The flight departed at 1807 and proceeded on a course of approximately 073 degrees magnetic for the planned one hour flight. Four of the passengers were from one family and they reported to the Safety Board investigator that they were instructed to call the balloon company at 1430 the day of the flight to confirm that everything was on schedule. They further reported that about 1400 they received a call from the operator and that "everything looked good" and the location they were going to depart from was known as "Ludwig's corner." When they arrived at that location they noticed that there were two balloons that were going to depart. They were met by the balloon operator and were given a health disclosure statement and were told to read and sign that form. Two of the family members and another passenger went to utilize a restroom nearby and upon their return the balloon operator was in the process of completing the safety briefing; however the briefing was not repeated for them. Several of the passengers reported seeing the accident pilot watching the "helium type" balloons for a longer period of time than the pilot of the other balloon. One of the passengers overhead the accident pilot stating that he was concerned that the wind would take them in the direction of Phoenixville and several passengers reported that up until about 10 minutes prior to the flight departing they were being told there was a "50/50 chance they can go." Several passengers reported to the Safety Board investigator that the ascent was smooth but that they were surprised at how "cramped the accommodations were" and how much heat and noise was emitted from the burner assembly. Through the flight one of the passengers, who was also an off duty police officer, reported that the pilot seemed to be very "apprehensive" and was very "concerned about something." Numerous passengers reported that the pilot was "very focused and quiet with what he was doing." Approximately 1.9 miles from the accident location a witness on the ground saw and took photos of the accident balloon. The photos did not indicate any problems with the balloon and the ground witness observed the passengers "waving and having a good time." The passengers stated that a few minutes prior to the landing the pilot informed them that the wind was taking them in the direction of Phoenixville and that there were few landing areas so the flight was going to be "cut short." Several of the passengers felt that the approach seemed normal and that the pilot had told them to "bend your knees everything is normal," one of the passengers, who had taken balloon flights previously thought the balloon was "headed to the ground to fast," another passenger had asked the pilot if they should exit the basket as soon as it was on the ground. The pilot replied "don't get out under any circumstances" and kept his hand near the burner during the descent. The balloon basket struck the tops of pine trees that surrounded the field in which they were trying to land, impacted the ground "very hard," bounced, tilted toward one side, bounced again, uprighted, then tilted over, and came to rest on the side of the basket containing the fuel cylinders. Several passengers reported immediately after the first bounce the heat inside the basket was "extremely intense," and the pilot had told everyone to "get out." After the first bounce and prior to the second bounce at least one of the passengers was observed "flying out of the basket" while several of the passengers had fallen on top of each other. One of the passengers witnessed the pilot with his feet on the top rail "pulling on something," even though his arms and legs were on fire. After the passengers exited the basket the pilot was seen attempting to exit however the basket tilted over on the fuel cylinder side and the pilot was last seen being carried over with the basket through the flames. An eyewitness on the road observed the balloon impact the ground, slide, become airborne, and was approximately 5 to 6 feet in the air, the trailing edge of the balloon caught fire, impacted the ground a second time with the base of the envelope in flames, the basket was dragged, and the passenger compartment area was engulfed in flames. In an interview with the operator's personnel that were in communication with the balloon pilot and were also following the progression of the balloon's flight from the "chase van" reported that approximately 10 to 15 minutes prior to the accident they could hear what sounded like "laughing in the background." The personnel also reported that they had the balloon in sight the entire flight. They noticed that the pilot was "low over a horse area" which they felt was "very odd." During the balloon's approach to the intended field for landing their view became obscured by a house and a barn so they did not see the balloon touch down. However, they did observe the "top shift as if stopping" followed shortly by observing "the bottom of the basket on fire." They immediately began to navigate the van and trailer up the driveway at which point they observed some of the passengers running toward their vehicle. As they approached the balloon the basket and bottom portion of the envelope was "engulfed in flames" and they and a passenger attempted to extinguish the fire with the portable fire extinguishers that were in the van and the trailer. The communication between the pilot of the balloon and the "chase van" was not recorded. PERSONNEL INFORMATION The pilot, age 67, held a commercial pilot certificate, with a rating for airplane single-engine land, instrument airplane, and lighter-than-air free balloon. The latter included a limitation for hot air balloon with airborne heater. The pilot also held flight and ground instructor certificates. His most recent Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) second-class medical certificate was issued on March 13, 2008, and the pilot reported 1,143 total hours of flight experience as of that date. The pilot's logbook was not able to be located in order to determine the total number of hours of flight experience in balloons; however in a review of the balloon records revealed that between July 12, 2008 and the accident flight the pilot had flown the accident balloon for a total of 19 flight hours and w