Balloon Safety Tips - Powerlines and Thunderstorms
Balloon safety
Balloon Safety Tips - Powerlines and Thunderstorms
FAA balloon-safety guidance addressing powerline hazards, thunderstorms, and operational precautions.
- Publication number
- FAA-P-8740-34
- Publisher
- Federal Aviation Administration
- Access
- Free official publication
- Best for
- Balloon safety
Purpose and audience
About this handbook
A concise FAA safety reference addressing two high-consequence hazards: powerlines and thunderstorms.
Who should use it
Balloon pilots, students, instructors, and crew members planning around electrical and convective hazards.
Key subjects
What you’ll learn
Powerline recognition and avoidance
Electrical-contact precautions
Thunderstorm development and outflow
Launch, landing, and diversion decisions
Practical study
How to use it in training
Review it during recurrent training and before flights where route, landing options, or convective weather could increase exposure.
- Set an objective. Choose the chapter or topic that supports the next lesson, task, or operating decision.
- Read actively. Mark definitions, diagrams, limitations, and questions to discuss with an instructor or qualified professional.
- Apply the material. Work a scenario, calculation, briefing, simulator exercise, or supervised practical task.
- Verify current information. Check regulations, official notices, charts, and approved aircraft or equipment documents.
Edition awareness
Revision and authority notes
Use current weather information and emergency guidance. This brochure is supplemental safety material, not a complete operating manual.
Directory review date: August 1, 2026
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