Barnes AX-7 accident near Utica, Michigan, July 17, 1983
On July 17, 1983, a Barnes AX-7 (balloon), registered N1515K, was destroyed in an accident near Utica, Michigan. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 17, 1983
- Place
- Utica, Michigan
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Barnes AX-7
- Registration
- N1515K · no longer on the register · serial 10337
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE STUDENT PILOT MADE A DELAYED DECISION TO LAND AND LANDED WITHIN A FEW FT OF WIRES WITHOUT SEEING THEM. THE GROUND CREW TRIED TO HOLD HIM BUT THE BALLOON STILL HAD TOO MUCH LIFT. THE STUDENT THEN SAW THE WIRES AND TRIED TO GO OVER THEMBUT THE COLLISION OCCURRED. THE STUDENT JUMPED FROM ABOUT 30 FT UP AS THE BALLOON FREED ITSELF FROM THE WIRES, FLOATED ABOUT 1/2 MILE AND CRASHED.
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: student
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 15 hours in all; 15 in this make and model; 15 in the last 90 days; 15 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 160 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, July 1, 1983
- Maximum gross weight: 900 lb
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: (type not recorded); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Rochester MI at 11:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 280° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 90°F (32°C), dew point 64°F (18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:50 pm from DET, 15 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
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.