Pilot Withdrew From Friends, Investigators; Passed Away In March

Tom Reyes lived out every balloonist's nightmare during last year's Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta in New Mexico.

As ANN reported, his balloon became entangled in power lines October 8, and he and four passengers fell to the ground during his attempt to free the craft. 60-year-old Rosemary Wooley Phillips died. The other three passengers filed suit against Reyes, two companies for which he worked, and the festival.

The National Transportation Safety Board's probable cause report lists 11 factors in the crash. Board members ruled Reyes was distracted by another balloon hitting a house, and that he was flying too low. They said the ground crew pulling on a drop line while Reyes fired his burner caused a propane tank to rip a hole in the basket.

"The pilot felt one corner of the basket drop and saw the hole," the report reads. "He looked up through the balloon's throat and could see blue sky because the dilation vent had become unseated. He did not know he had lost a passenger until the other passengers started yelling, "She fell out! She fell out!" The balloon drifted east, and then descended. The pilot said the balloon came down faster than terminal descent speed. It landed hard at the intersection of Comanche Road and Vassar Road. Passerby tended to the pilot and passengers until emergency personnel arrived."

Balloon pilot and trainer Beth Wright-Smith told KRQE-TV News she had known Reyes 20 years, and saw the accident take a profound toll on him. "He's been flying a long, long time. He flew hundreds and hundreds of people," she said. "I can imagine how it would ruin your life and how bad you feel for the people who were involved, the families. It would be just awful."

KRQE reports Reyes withdrew from friends and family after the accident. The NTSB says he stopped responding to an investigator's questions. In March, he died of medical problems.

The lawsuit, however, lives on. KRQE reports one of the sued parties is in the process of settling.

FMI: Read The Probable Cause Report