Balloon Works AX-8 accident near Beech Island, South Carolina, February 6, 1999
On February 6, 1999 at about 10:00 pm local time, a Balloon Works AX-8, registered N32877, was destroyed in an accident near Beech Island, South Carolina. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to follow the balloon checklist that resulted in a ground fire that destroyed the balloon envelope.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 6, 1999 · about 10:00 pm local time
- Place
- Beech Island, South Carolina · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Balloon Works AX-8
- Registration
- N32877 · no longer on the register · serial F8-421
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
After landing, the pilot turned off the pilot light valves on the tanks but not on the burners. The pilot then started deflating the balloon and laid the basket over on its side. While exiting the basket, the pilot bumped the main valve. The flames from the burner ignited the balloon envelope, and started a ground fire. The Balloon Works Firefly Series Flight Manual states that, 'Just prior to touchdown: (1) Make sure that the Trigger Valve (and/or Fire 2 Valve if in use) is firmly closed, (2) Close the Pilot Light Safety Shut Off. Action (2) is a precaution against possibility that the pilot lights or accidental burning might damage the envelope or ignite anything at the landing site.'
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; rotorcraft: balloon
- Flight time: 1,081 hours in all; 861 in this make and model; 42 in the last 90 days; 9 in the last 30 days; 1,016 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 30 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 1,660 lb
- Seats: 0
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: (type not recorded); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: Augusta GA at 9:00 pm
- Destination: SC
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 250° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 12,000 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:53 pm from AGS, 6 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.