Balloonist goes down for close shave

Daryl McKee's balloon on an earlier Sky Tower fly-past. Picture / Martin Sykes

A hot-air balloonist who had a "close shave" with the top of the Sky Tower has been fined $1250 for low flying and operating a balloon in a careless manner.

Daryl Neilson McKee, who owns the Balloon Expedition Company with his wife, took off from Okahu Bay in Auckland's eastern suburbs on May 16, 2003.

The balloon had five paying passengers and it was intended to fly over the Waitemata towards the western reaches of the harbour.

But a wind shift saw the balloon drift over the heavily built-up CBD towards the Sky Tower and McKee ended up landing in the grounds of Ponsonby Intermediate School.

Under Civil Aviation Authority rules, aircraft, including lighter-than-air balloons, cannot descend below 500 feet (152m) over water or unbuilt-up areas and below 1000 feet above the highest buildings in congested areas.

As he passed the Sky Tower McKee was supposed to be at a height of 2160 feet.

Prosecutor Mark Woolford told Judge Heemi Taumaunu in the Auckland District Court: "The defendant eventually flew alongside and slightly above the Auckland Sky Tower ... so that one of the passengers thought the balloon was about 20m above the top of the Sky Tower as they passed by."

Judge Taumaunu found the low flying and carelessness charges proved, but he said they were at the lower end of the scale.

McKee maintained that he flew at 1700 feet over the Sky Tower.

Judge Taumaunu said he doubted whether McKee ever achieved that height. Even if he did, it meant that he was flying lower than the required 1000 feet above the tower.

The judge said that it was not McKee's intention to fly over the CBD.

He said McKee faced the real possibility of becoming becalmed over the central city.

Judge Taumaunu said that two years earlier McKee had been involved in an incident when his balloon became becalmed over the Waitemata.

Passengers had to be off-loaded onto a police patrol boat.

McKee was advised by the CAA at the time about flying over the Auckland isthmus when light and variable winds could not guarantee arrival at a planned destination.

The Crown said that having been warned, a reasonable and prudent balloonist would not have chosen to launch from Okahu Bay in light and variable winds when there were alternative flight options to the west of Auckland.

None of the passengers was injured during the flight past the tower and, indeed, they said they found the flight enjoyable.

Outside the court, McKee's lawyer, Paul Cavanagh, QC, said his client now recognised that he needed to be careful where he chose to fly to avoid getting into an emergency situation.