Blimp catches fire, crashes at golf's U.S. Open; pilot forced to eject

(KFYR)
Published: Jun. 15, 2017 at 4:29 PM CDT
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Videos posted to social media captured the moment a commercial blimp flying over the U.S. Open golf tournament in Wisconsin crashed Thursday morning into an open field.

Spectators described the pilot parachuting out of the deflated and tattered aircraft, which appeared to have caught fire, just in time before it slammed to the ground in flames.

Thick smoke could be seen billowing in the distance.

"Oh my God, they just parachuted out, they just parachuted out," one person said in a tweeted video.

The aerial advertising firm AirSign confirmed to NBC News that the pilot escaped from one of its blimps and that no other person was on board. The blimp was advertising a local credit union and was not affiliated with the United States Golf Association.

The USGA said the blimp caught on fire and went down in a field about a half-mile from the Erin Hills golf course at 11:15 a.m. CT (12:15 p.m. ET).

First responders who were already at the tournament arrived to the crash site quickly to treat the pilot, the USGA said. No one on the ground was hurt.

The pilot sustained serious injuries and burns as a result of the crash and was airlifted to a hospital, said the Washington County Sheriff’'s Office.

A cause of the crash was not immediately known, but authorities said an initial investigation revealed the blimp may have experienced mechanical problems.

The blimp had been airborne for "several hours" when it crashed and was lawfully operating at the proper altitude, authorities said.

The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Bureau were assisting in the investigation.