U.S. Open Blimp Crash: Vessel Goes Down In Flames

WASHINGTON COUNTY, WI — A blimp carrying at least one passenger went down in flames Thursday morning at the U.S. Open in Erin Hills, Wisconsin, landing in a nearby farm field before horrified spectators who watched the the blimp's slow descent. The pilot escaped the fiery craft, but suffered serious burns and injuries and was airlifted from the area around noon. It doesn't appear any spectators at the championship golf tournament were injured.

The cause of the crash has yet to be officially confirmed, and the Federal Aviation Administration is investigating. The Washington County Sheriff's Office said initial indications are that the blimp may have experienced mechanical problems prior to the crash. (For more information on the U.S. Open and other local stories, subscribe to the Waukesha Patch's daily newsletter and breaking news alerts. Subscribe to the Across America Patch for national news updates.)

Patch reached out to the U.S. Open for more information on the crash but did not receive an immediate response. The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating.

The blimp fell from the sky around 11:20 a.m. during first-round play at the U.S. Open. Smoke was visible during the blimp's horrific descent. Witnesses described a terrifying scene as the side of the craft began deflating in the air.

“It stated deflating, and then it started going down,” Bryan Rosine told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. “They were trying to give it some throttle and it didn’t go up. Then there was a bunch of kabooms and smoke clouds.”

Initial reports indicated the pilot parachuted, but an official with AirSign, the Florida company that owns the blimp, told WISN-TV parachuting from a blimp is not possible. A spokesperson for company that owns the blimp told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel the pilot is expected to recover. The pilot stayed with the blimp until it went down and was pulled from the wreckage by a ground crew member.

According to eyewitness reports, paramedics could be seen transporting the apparent pilot via gurney to a waiting ambulance just after noon. ESPN said the pilot was alert and conscious. The Washington County Sheriff’s Office asked citizens avoid the area of the crash site to facilitate rescue operations.

The blimp was sponsored for the tournament by PenFed Credit Union, which is headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia.

Several spectators captured the dramatic footage.

According to reports, it was this blimp:

In an ironic twist to Thursday morning's blimp crash, a Twitter post published by AirSign called for U.S. Open spectators to share their blimp sighting pics online.

Here is the statement released Thursday morning regarding the Erin Hills blimp crash:

"According to local authorities, a commercial blimp not affiliated with the USGA or U.S. Open Championship broadcast crashed in an open field approximately a half-mile from the Erin Hills golf course at approximately 11:15 a.m. CDT. First responders were quick to the scene and the pilot is currently being treated for unknown injuries. No other people were involved in the incident and local law enforcement is currently investigating. Our thoughts and prayers are with the pilot at this time."

Such incidents are rare, according to Dan Coffey, who owns Air Strip WN75, where the blimp took off earlier Thursday. The plan was for the blimp to fly over the championship tournament until its Sunday conclusion.

"They were going to use it all week," Coffey told the Journal Sentinel. "He was flying it for hours. I don't know if the wind caught up with him or what.

"These airships are FAA approved. They make sure that every one is inspected," he said. "This is an extremely rare accident."

Two AirSign airplanes have been involved in two high-profile crashes, according to a database from the National Transportation Safety Board. In 2010, a pilot of a banner-towing airplane was killed when the propeller of the small craft he was operating struck the ground in the initial climb at a Florida airport. A Cessna registered to the company crash-landed on a road after the pilot lost engine power after takeoff at Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina. The pilot failed to follow a pre-flight safety checklist in that case, the National Traffic Safety Board said.

The 2017 U.S. Open is being held in Wisconsin's Erin Hills for the first time in the tournament's history. Tee times began Thursday with the opening round to conclude on Sunday, June 18. Dustin Johnson comes into the tournament as this year's favorite, however top golfers Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth and Jason Day are favored by oddsmakers as well.

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Photo credit: Ross Kinnaird/ Getty Images Sport/ Getty Images