Amateur-built Grom-1 accident near Kendall, Kansas, October 2, 2005
On October 2, 2005 at about 11:19 pm local time, a amateur-built Grom-1 (balloon), registered N96YD, suffered minor damage in an accident near Kendall, Kansas (Ulysses Airport). It was an air show or air race flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured; 1 other was unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the downdraft forcing the balloon into the power lines. A contrbuting factor was the clear air turbulence and the power lines.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 2, 2005 · about 11:19 pm local time
- Place
- Kendall, Kansas · Ulysses Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured; 1 other was unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Grom-1
- Registration
- N96YD · no longer on the register · serial 798
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Air show or air race flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The balloon, USA-1, was participating in the Gordon Bennett race. It had been aloft for 22 hours and had traveled some 350 to 400 miles. Cruising about 35 mph in "smooth air" at 7,000 feet msl, it encountered "mid-afternoon dry thermals" and a "sudden and unexpected downdraft." The dry thermals forced the balloon into an "extreme" and uncontrolled descent. The veriometer "pegged" at 1,500 feet per minute descent. The crew attempted to arrest the descent rate by throwing ballast overboard, but was unsuccessful and the balloon collided with power lines. The entangled gondola severed the power lines and the balloon ascended rapidly. As it ascended, the gondola "pitched violently as much as 60 degrees" and the pilot fell out at a height approximately 30 to 40 feet. The balloon ascended with the copilot still on board. Using a satellite telephone, she notified the chase crew and gave them the location of the accident. The balloon ascended to 14,000 feet msl before the copilot was able to "[execute] a controlled descent." The balloon hit the ground hard approximately 8 miles from the accident 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: instructor: powered-lift; rotorcraft: balloon
- Flight time: 1,827 hours in all; 910 in this make and model; 39 in the last 90 days; 1,827 as pilot in command; 250 on instruments
- Last flight review: May 1, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: unk
- Injury: serious injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: rotorcraft: balloon
- Medical certificate: Class 2
- Injury: no injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: instructor: powered-lift; rotorcraft: balloon
- Flight time: 1,850 hours in all; 395 in this make and model; 20 in the last 90 days; 1,522 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: March 1, 2004
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: unk
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 711.1 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, August 1, 2005; 109.3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,438 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Gas Balloon; 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Albuquerque NM at 1:46 am
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 25 knots, gusting 29
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 93°F (34°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 29.82 inHg
- Observation at 10:54 pm from GCK, 49 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 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.