The pilots of a United Airlines jet struck by an apparent weather balloon during an Oct. 16 flight near Moab, Utah, were struck by flying glass before making an emergency landing, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Thursday.
Last month, WindBorne Systems said it believes one of its balloons hit and cracked the windshield of United Airlines Flight 1093, a .
The NTSB said the trajectory of the WindBorne long-duration, high-altitude weather balloon, recorded by radar, was consistent with the trajectory of the United jet. The balloon had departed Spokane, Washington, the day before, flying over Oregon and Nevada before finally entering airspace over Utah.
“The impact caused both to be struck by flying glass. The captain suffered multiple superficial cuts to his right arm,” the NTSB said.
The first officer was not injured.
The captain said he had spotted a distant object on the horizon, but before he could mention it to the first officer, there was a significant impact on the windshield and a loud bang.
NTSB Chairman Jennifer Homendy said last month that the incident “could have been truly devastating for the aircraft and those on board.”
Initially, there were concerns that the damage may have been caused by space debris. Previous government studies have suggested a very small risk of debris hitting jets in flight.
Airplane windshields are multi-layered to prevent loss of cabin pressure if they are damaged during flight.
The NTSB reported that with 112 passengers and crew. The commander declared an emergency and diverted the route safely to Salt Lake City. The passengers were transported on another aircraft to Los Angeles later that day.
WindBorne previously said it has conducted more than 4,000 launches and that it sends a notification to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for each launch.
The company said on Thursday (20) that it “implemented four additional safety measures to further reduce the possibility of future interactions between aircraft and balloons, as well as to mitigate damage if a new impact occurs.”
WindBorne also claims to have reduced time spent in key commercial altitude ranges by approximately 50% across its entire fleet and is providing automated email reports every two hours for all balloons in certain areas.
