Thunder and Colt COLT 240A N434TC

Summary

On 27 September 1996 at about 15:07 local time, a Thunder and Colt COLT 240A registered N434TC, operated by Jeffrey M. Sherman, was involved in an accident near Phoenix, Arizona, United States. 14 people were on board and 2 were seriously injured, 12 had minor injuries. The aircraft was slightly damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

27 September 1996 at 15:07

Classification

Accident

Location

Phoenix, Arizona, United States

Nearest airport

Phoenix--Deer Valley Muni (DVT)

Coordinates

33.6795, -112.0891

Aircraft

Thunder and Colt COLT 240A

Registration

N434TC

Category

Balloon

Operator

Jeffrey M. Sherman

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Unknown

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Minor

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX96FA344

2 people were seriously injured.

The pilot's impairment of judgment and performance due to drugs which led to his misjudgment of his descent rate during landing. Contributing factors were: his failure to activate the deflation device (rip line) and turn off the pilot lights, improper use of burner controls, poor judgment, and the relative high wind condition.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot received a contract from a resort hotel to provide 13 fare-paying passengers with a balloon ride. Hotel management did not perform a background competency check prior to utilizing the pilot's services. The pilot selected the departure site and did not launch pibals to determine the speed and direction of the winds aloft. The flight commenced from a location about 6 nm north-northeast of the FAA controlled Deer Valley Airport, and the airport's wind was from the northeast. After takeoff, the balloon drifted into the airport's Class D airspace and traffic pattern. The pilot had no communication with the control tower. As the balloon drifted through the airspace, the pilot commenced descending at a high rate and impacted hard in an open field about 1 mile west of the airport. The balloon bounced several times and the pilot failed to turn off the pilot lights or rip open the envelope's deflation panel. The 8-knot surface wind blew the balloon into a cement block wall resulting in the pilot's ejection from the basket. With increased buoyancy, the balloon became airborne. None of the passengers were pilots, and the envelope's skirt ignited when they attempted to control the burners. The balloon impacted the ground two more times, and during each impact groups of passengers exited the basket. The balloon eventually drifted over power lines, an interstate highway, past a gasoline service station, and through the final approach course to active runway 07 until finally coming to rest about 2 miles southwest of the airport. Evidence of cocaine was found in the pilot's blood and its metabolite was found in his urine. The pilot had a previous accident, incident, and FAA enforcement history. As with his previous accident, the pilot failed to submit the required accident report.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.