BURLINGTON, Wis. — The National Transportation Safety Board's (NTSA) final report released Thursday blames a pilot error for a 2022 Burlington balloon crash that hit a train and injured three people.
The hot air balloon crashed and hit a train near Calumet and Jefferson in the City of Burlington on June 1, 2022. Three people, including the pilot, suffered life-threatening injuries. Two of the victims had to be flown to the hospital by Flight for Life.
The report says NTSA determined the probable cause of the accident to be, "The pilot’s selection of an inappropriate landing location and his failure to avoid an oncoming freight train, which resulted in the train colliding with and dragging the balloon."
The report explains the pilot was attempting to land the balloon on a road that paralleled railroad tracks. A freight train was traveling on the tracks at the same time. The balloon initially touched down on a grassy ear but skipped and stopped near the tracks. According to the report, the balloon envelope dipped due to being slightly deflated and got caught on the uprights of an empty lumber car as it passed. This caused the balloon to lift off the ground and be dragged.
As the envelope tore away from the basket, the three people in the basket fell out, according to a witness report.
Lake Geneva Balloon Company previously said in a statement to TMJ4 that the balloon that crashed was with their company, but was being operated by a “subcontractor pilot.”
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