Erin Hills, Wisconsin …
The pilot of a commercial blimp flying over the U.S. Open suffered serious injuries and burns when the blimp crashed mid morning.
The pilot was seen parachuting out of the deflated craft before it crashed into a nearby field in flames.
It is being reported 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.
Whoa the blimp did blow up upon impact pic.twitter.com/DcVt0JoU9K
— Eric Buenning (@ericbuenning) June 15, 2017
Fire officials were quickly on the scene to attend to 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
