Accident to the Cameron Z120 registered PH-NBR on 29/07/2023 at Chambley-Bussières

This is a courtesy translation by the BEA of the Final Report on the Safety Investigation. As accurate as the translation may be, the original text in French is the work of reference.

Note: the following information is principally based on the pilot’s statement. This information has not been independently validated by the BEA.

1. History of the flight

The pilot was taking part in a mass ascent from Chambley aerodrome as part of the Grand Est Mondial Air Ballons show. He explained that the weather conditions on the take-off site were good, with a wind of around five to eight knots. He took off at 20:50 and flew at a low height due to the adverse weather conditions a little further on. He specified that the thirty or so balloons in flight were also flying at a low height for this same reason. He informed his three passengers that during the landing, the basket would be dragged along the ground.

On approaching sunset, he identified a large field (situated at around 3 NM north-east of the take-off site), informed the passengers of his decision to land there and reminded them to correctly hold their positions. The pilot specified that the speed at this point was around seven knots but that at a metre from the ground, the speed increased to around twelve knots. The pilot believed that a gust caused this acceleration. Having pulled the rapid deflation line, he continued the landing. The basket bounced twice and then on the third contact with the ground, tipped onto its side and was dragged along before coming to a stop. The pilot indicated that the landing was carried out facing an upward slope. He added that his safety belt was fastened during the landing.

One passenger broke her ankle. He specified that this passenger had told him that her foot got caught during the landing which could have caused the injury. The basket was not divided into compartments.

2. Additional information

2.1. Pilot information

The Dutch pilot held a valid balloon pilot licence along with a class 2 medical fitness certificate. At the time of the event, he had logged around 110 flight hours as pilot-in-command.

2.2. Meteorological information

The pilot reported that the weather conditions had been correct for the whole of the week but were not ideal and that there had been difficult landings. He added that on the day of the accident, the clearance to start the ascent had been given as there was a moment of stability in the weather conditions.

The analysis[1] of the weather conditions by the met office, Météo-France, between 20:00 and 22:00 on the accident site indicated:

• cumulonimbus of 1 to 3 octas based between 800 and 1,000 m; 
• cumulus of 4 to 6 octas based between 800 and 1,000 m;
• moderate shower between 20:00 and 20:25;
• visibility greater than 10 km, reduced to 5 km during the shower;
• mean west-south-west wind of 4 to 10 kt;