Very sad indeed.
Without speculating on any cause of this accident it does hammer home to me that if the conditions are even slightly conducive to wing collapse situations, fly with enough height to give your self a chance to rectify the problem, or deploy your reserve.
It would be interesting to find out what phase of flight this happened in, and if there was any attempt to throw a reserve, if one was carried.
My only experience of flying in the proximity of balloons was in Thailand on a flex-wing microlight. The pilot warned me before hand not to fly above or below him as they can ascend fairly quickly and descend in the same manner. There was no mention of spilling air but if this is something that happens it's unlikely to cause the upset to a microlight as it would to a paramotor wing.
Regards Kev
