A mistake made by a hot air balloon pilot who had drugs including cocaine in his system caused a crash in 2021 in New Mexico that killed all five people on board, investigators have determined.

The National Transportation Safety Board said in its final report released this week that pilot Nicholas Meleski did not maintain enough clearance from power lines while trying to land. He hit the power lines and crashed into a busy intersection. The report said investigators found no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures.

  • @jonne
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    2411 months ago

    Cocaine is definitely not the drug I’d associate with ballooning.

    • Bonehead
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      fedilink
      1711 months ago

      It’s the late 1800s, safety regulations don’t exist, cocaine is freely available, and you have a shit-ton of materials laying around with a crazy idea of floating around the city.

      Its exact the drug I’d associate with ballooning.

      • @jonne
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        811 months ago

        Point taken