TAIC released their final reports into the incidents involving a Sunrise Balloon Adventures hot air balloon, near Arrowtown, on July 9, 2021 and Ultramagic Balloons on January 1, 2022, at Lyndhurst, near Methven.
In the first incident, near Arrowtown, the balloon, carrying the pilot and 10 passengers, was attempting its third landing.
The basket struck the lip of a gully leading up to the paddock — the pilot, not wearing a restraint harness, and two passengers, who were not in the correct crouched landing position and not holding on to rope handles, as required, were ejected.
In both situations, had the pilots been wearing harnesses it was almost certain they would have remained in their baskets.
TAIC subsequently recommended to both the CAA director and secretary of transport to address that residual safety issue.
CAA aviation safety deputy chief executive David Harrison said the authority contacted New Zealand’s four commercial balloon operators to remind them of the safety risk of pilots not wearing harnesses during critical flight phases, and all had now incorporated that requirement into their safety management systems.
"The authority is heartened by the response of commercial balloon operators to adopt this practice."
