Could You Be
Hit by a Weather Balloon

Every pilot who has studied weather knows that balloons are utilized to collect data about the atmosphere. The topic was discussed in the March 2010 AOPA edition of Flight Training magazine in the article “Rise Up”. You’ll have to be an AOPA member, however, to read the article at that link on line.

The article describes how 92 weather balloons are launched twice daily by the National Weather Service. The balloons rise to an altitude in excess of 100,000 feet, burst, and then the sensor falls back to Earth on a parachute. The author states that the chances of a balloon verses airplane strike are low.

Our own Warren Webb wrote to article author Jack Williams questioning whether there ever had been an airplane strike of a balloon. The answer to Warren’s question is posted on Jack William’s website.