On 26 February 2013, a hot air balloon crashed near Luxor, Egypt, killing 19 out of the 21 people on board.

[2][3] Hot air balloons are commonly used in Luxor to provide tourists with aerial views of the Nile River, the temple of Karnak, and the Valley of the Kings, among other historical attractions.

[8] On 26 February at 07:00 Egypt Standard Time (05:00 UTC), an Ultramagic N-425 balloon,[9] registration SU-283,[10] operated by Sky Cruise departed on a sight-seeing flight carrying 20 passengers and a pilot.

[1][6] As the fire engulfed the basket, the pilot and one passenger leaped to safety as the craft rose rapidly aided by a wind gust.

Youssef said it appeared that a gas leak in one of the balloon's tanks caused the fire and resulting explosion, consistent with information reported in state-run media.

[17] After news of the accident broke, Governor of Luxor Ezzat Saad banned hot air balloon flights in his jurisdiction until further notice.

[4] Egypt's civil aviation minister, Wael el-Maadawi, followed by suspending balloon flights nationwide.

[1] In a statement, President Mohamed Morsi expressed his "deepest condolences and sympathy for the families of those who lost their lives in this tragic incident.

[15] Mohammed Osman, head of the Luxor Tourism Chamber, accused civil aviation authorities of lowering standards prior to the accident.

[5] An anonymous civil aviation ministry official acknowledged to the press that standards had been weakened by the current regime.

[5] Local and foreign media analysts speculated that the crash would hurt Egypt's already weakened tourism industry, which was down 22% from 2010 levels.

[8] The same day, Saad admitted that pressure to resume balloon flights was mounting and promised that downtime would be less than a month.

[8] Hot air balloon rides at Luxor were set to resume in April, according to a statement on the Egyptian Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission's (CARC) website.

[8] On 2 March, Luxor-area balloon pilots held a press conference to defend Egypt's safety protocol and their colleague's actions.