THE terrifying last moments of a young hot air balloon pilot have been laid bare in a harrowing accident investigation report about the fatal crash.
More details have emerged about a fatal hot air balloon crash at Omberlsey Court which claimed the life of 25-year-old pilot Peter Gregory on June 25 last year.
Full details of the incident have been published in a report by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) with the likely explanation being a parachute stall during a rapid climb which caused the amateur-built balloon's envelope to collapse.
Watching the incident unfold from the air, other pilots landed and rushed to the stricken pilot's aid but nothing could be done to save him.
"One possible scenario is that the pilot used a high rate of climb to gain a competitive edge because of his desire to do well in the competition and, if he noticed he was exceeding the competition’s climb rate limit, he is likely to have wanted to rapidly reduce his climb rate to avoid receiving a penalty. This may have caused him to use the parachute excessively or for an extended period, which could have triggered the rapid onset of a parachute stall," the report said.
The report author added: "It is not known where the pilot was looking during the rapid climb. Video evidence from the previous flight showed he did not always look up at the parachute when operating it, and when he did, it was usually a quick glance. This may not have given him sufficient time to recognise what he was seeing and respond accordingly."
The post-mortem report stated that death was caused by ‘multiple injuries caused by a fall from a height’ as Mr Gregory competed in the event, organised by the BAC Competitions Club as part of their British Grand Prix Series.
The report showed that the pilot had 569 hours of flying experience. Investigators believe the balloon design, weather conditions and the rapid climb are likely to have contributed to the accident.
As part of the competition, pilots were required to drop a marker as close as possible to Ombersley Park. The parachute was seated correctly at the launch at around 5am at Worcester Racecourse.
One witness, another pilot, said Mr Gregory's 'streamered' and descended rapidly. Another pilot heard the sound of fabric 'whipping' and she looked to see Mr Gregory's balloon 'streamered' and burnt fabric above the basket. The balloon's final moments were also captured by two scorers as three other pilots landed and rushed to the accident site.
One pilot, identified in the report as G-CLHS, was the first to arrive on scene, reporting that the burner pilot lights were still lit so he 'switched them off and later turned off the gas cylinders and vented the supply lines'.
"They administered CPR to the pilot until the emergency services arrived," the report said.
Other witnesses on the ground described Mr Gregory's balloon 'appearing to deflate and descend rapidly before striking the ground'. One described the seeing what looked like 'just a basket on its own dragging a piece of string'.
Mr Gregory's balloon was 'an amateur-built racing balloon and was manufactured by the accident pilot', its first flight taking place at Cheltenham Festival on June 18, 2022. Before the crash, the hot air balloon had been flown for more than 21 hours.
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Photos shared in the report show the remains of the balloon snagged on the fractured remains of tree branches.
At the base of the tree, the balloon’s basket was found on its side with the burners still mounted to the basket by burner support rods.
Mr Gregory was described in the report as 'an experienced competition balloon pilot having competed for several years all over the world'.
Aggressive venting whilst in a fast climb could more easily result in a parachute stall, the report said.
Several experienced competition pilots who had experienced parachute stalls, also suggested they tend to occur when lightly loaded, in turbulent or unstable air masses, and when using the parachute during a rapid climb.
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