LOCKHART, Texas A hot air balloon burst into flames over central Texas on Saturday after apparently striking power lines and plunged into a field, killing all 16 people aboard in one of the deadliest such accidents on record, police and eyewitnesses said.
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The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) reportedly began warning two-years ago of a risk for a “high number of fatalities in a single air tour balloon accident” if the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) did not enact stronger regulations on hot air ballooning.
“When the Emergency Responders and the Sheriff’s Office arrived on the scene, it was apparent that the reported fire was the basket portion of a hot air balloon”, it added in a statement posted on Twitter.
The crash occurred in pastureland below what appears to be a row of massive high-powered transmission lines.
Sumwalt said balloons typically have “chase cars” that pick up riders after they land.
Federal investigators have not publicly identified the pilot or the company that operated the balloon, but roommate and co-worker Alan Lirette told The Associated Press that Nichols piloted the balloon that crashed Saturday, killing at least 16 people.
The deadliest hot air balloon crash took place in Luxor, Egypt, on February 26, 2013. Investigators believe the balloon may have crashed into power lines before the crash.
The National Transportation Safety Board brief reporters on Sunday. Hot air balloon pilots must be certified and the balloons must be certified for airworthiness. They remembered Nichols’ personality and the hot air balloon with a smile on the side. “Not only the cloud cover, visibility and the winds, but we will also be looking at the temperature to see if the conditions might have created a density altitude”, said Sumwalt.
The FAA inspects the balloons used for commercial ventures after 100 hours of flight time or at least once a year.
A newlywed couple was among the 16 victims claimed by a Texas hot air balloon crash on Saturday that is being called the worst in USA history. The board noted that balloon tour operators aren’t subject to the same safety oversight as somewhat similar airplane and helicopter tour operations.
Margaret Wylie lives about a quarter-mile from the crash site and told The Associated Press that she was letting her dog out Saturday morning when she heard a “pop, pop, pop”. NTSB records show Kubicek brand balloons have been involved in four crashes investigated by federal authorities in the past five years, all hard landings that resulted in serious injuries but no deaths. A fire investigator has also been brought in to examine the fire element of the crash.
The rating is limited to hot air balloons with an airborne heater.
– October 3, 1982: An explosion on board a hot air balloon carrying nine people at a festival in Albuquerque, New Mexico, killed four people and injured five.
The officer said that based on photographs he is confident the man arrested then is the same man who piloted the Texas balloon.
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The death of 16 people makes this the most fatal hot-air balloon crash in USA history, according to information from the NTSB.
