NTSB CAROL · Event
Event WPR20CA272
Registry · N900FC
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
FRICKE B/CUNEO P RX-8
Year of manufacture
2007 · 13 years old at event
Engine
NONE NONE
Seats / Engines
1 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
20210503
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S AC6FAC
Registrant of record
FRICKE BARBARA A
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The pilot’s failure to maintain the proper descent rate during the balloon’s approach to a high-wind landing, which resulted in a hard landing and serious passenger injury.
Factual narrative
The pilot reported that for the balloon flight, the wind conditions were forecast to be light and variable at 4 knots. The wind at take0ff was from the north at 5 mph and 40 minutes later had increased to 15 mph. The pilot subsequently executed a high wind landing procedure. The balloon landed hard and was not damaged; however, the passenger, who was braced for landing, suffered a serious broken ankle injury. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the balloon that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12
NTSB Findings
Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).
- — Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot
- — Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Descent rate-Not attained/maintained
- — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-High wind-Effect on operation
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2020_WPR20CA272.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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