Lance Hopping, 50, was the pilot of the balloon. He was due to marry long-time partner Nina Kelynack at Easter Weekend.

Tour operators must be tested for drugs, families of the victims of the Carterton ballooning tragedy say after a damning report.



The call came as the Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) said it had investigated six incidents in the past 10 years where people had tested positive for performance-impairing substances. Thirty-five people had died in those accidents.

The commission called for more stringent laws around alcohol and drugs in the transport sector.



Under the influence of cannabis, balloon pilot Lance Hopping showed poor judgement and made poor decisions which contributed to 11 people dying in the Wairarapa ballooning tragedy, a report released today said.



Passengers Desmond and Ann Dean, Denise Dellabarca, Johannes Jordaan and Alexis Still, Diana and Howard Cox, Valerie Bennett, Stephen Hopkirk and Belinda Harter died in the crash, along with Hopping, when the hot-air balloon they were in became entangled in power lines near Carterton shortly after 7.20am on on January 7, 2012.



Post-mortem toxicology results from 53-year-old Hopping showed the result of long-term and recent use of cannabis, the TAIC report found.



The family of victims Bennett and Dellabarca said they had been ''taken from us in an avoidable tragedy caused through errors of judgement, by a well-respected pilot impaired by the short- and long-term use of cannabis.''



Family spokeswoman Sheryl Rule called for mandatory drug testing across the transport and adventure tourism sectors.

"We as a nation need to show that we take the safety of our citizens and guests seriously, and that it is not OK to be so complacent regarding the use of impairing drugs and alcohol in safety critical roles.''



TAIC Chief Commissioner John Marshall QC said he could not say for sure how much cannabis use, either long-term or recent, had contributed to the Carterton accident.



"While it is difficult to say how much each type of use contributed to the result, cannabis is known to affect a person's judgement and decision-making ability," TAIC said.



"Poor judgement and poor decision-making were factors contributing to this accident. The commission found that the pilot's use of cannabis could not be excluded as a factor contributing to his errors of judgement, and therefore to the accident."



"Both long term and recent use of cannabis may significantly impair a person's performance of their duties, especially those involving complex tasks."



He had levels of THC - an active ingredient of cannabis - of 2 micrograms per litre of blood.



On the balance of probabilities, that level of THC resulted from both longer term and recent use, TAIC said.



"On reviewing the evidence available, it was highly likely that the pilot smoked cannabis on the morning of the flight."



Two witnesses had seen him smoking on the balcony of a shed shortly before the flight.



The pilot was not known to smoke regular cigarettes and his urine tested negative for cotinine, which was normally found in the urine of someone who smoked regular tobacco.

CALL FOR REFORM



TAIC called for significant reform of alcohol and drug regulation across the aviation, rail and marine modes.



It recommended the introduction of appropriate legislation or rules that would:



* prescribe allowable maximum levels of alcohol



* prohibit people from operating an aircraft, vessel or rail vehicle if impaired by drugs



* require operators to put in place drug and alcohol detection and deterrence regimes, including random testing



* test for drugs and alcohol after any incident.



TAIC said it was increasingly seeing more incidents where the use of performance-impairing substances was a feature.



A key lesson from the crash was that: "Under no circumstances should operators of transport vehicles, or crew members and support crew with safety-critical roles ever use it."



A second lesson involved power lines, a well-recognised critical hazard to hot-air balloon operators.



It had been unsafe for Hopping to allow the balloon to descend below the level of power lines, and to remain at a low level while the balloon crossed a paddock, TAIC said.



When collision with the power lines became unavoidable, Hopping should have followed the balloon manufacturer's advice and rapidly descended, instead he tried to climb.



"Balloon pilots should give them a wide margin and if they ever inadvertently encounter them, they should follow the balloon manufacturers' advice and best industry practice to mitigate the possible consequences," TAIC said.

1 of 28 TAIC A TAIC picture points to where the fuel supply later burst. 2 of 28 MAARTEN HOLL Parents of crash vitim Alexis Still, Allan and Vivienne Still with her two older siblings Ben, 22, and Emma-Jane, 24. 3 of 28 ROBERT KITCHIN Wairarapa Area Commander Brent Register talks to media during a briefing on investigations into the fatal balloon crash. 4 of 28 ROBERT KITCHIN TAIC communications manager Peter Northcote. 5 of 28 PHIL REID/The Dominion Post Police at the scene of the balloon crash which killed 11 people. 6 of 28 Twitter Alexis Still. 7 of 28 Supplied Lance Robert Hopping, 50, was to marry long-time partner Nina Jane Kelynack at Easter weekend. 8 of 28 ROBERT KITCHIN/Fairfax NZ Friends and family at the scene of Saturday's hot air balloon tragedy at Carterton. 9 of 28 RYAN BECKETT An onlooker took this photo only moments before the fatal crash near Carterton. 10 of 28 PHIL REID/The Dominion Post Two of the three tents covering the area where the balloon crashed. 11 of 28 PHIL REID/Fairfax NZ Flowers being placed on Somerset Road near the site of the fatal hot air balloon crash. 12 of 28 PHIL REID/Fairfax NZ A man talks to police officers at the scene of the fatal balloon crash in Carterton. 13 of 28 ROBERT KITCHIN/Fairfax NZ Deputy chief investigator for TAIC (Transport Accident Investigation Commission) Peter Williams, left, Police Area commander Inspector Brent Register, and Nathan Guy at Saturday's press conference regarding the fatal balloon accident near Carterton. 14 of 28 ROBERT KITCHIN/Fairfax NZ Carterton mayor Ron Mark at Saturday's press conference. 15 of 28 PHIL REID/Fairfax NZ People leave the scene of the hot air balloon crash, near Carterton. 16 of 28 Phil Reid Relatives at the scene of the fatal Carterton air balloon crash. 17 of 28 Phil Reid Nurses Jacqui O'Connor and Annette Tempest were among the first on the scene of the fatal hot air balloon disaster on Somerset Rd in Carterton, Wairarapa. 18 of 28 Phil Reid A woman places flowers at the scene of the fatal Carterton air balloon crash. 19 of 28 Phil Reid The scene of the fatal balloon accident in Somerset Rd, Carterton. 20 of 28 Phil Reid The site of the crash being photographed from a fire. 21 of 28 Phil Reid Police talk to media at the scene of a horrific balloon crash near Carterton. From left to right: Wellington District commander Superintendent Mike Rusbatch and Wairarapa area commander Inspector Brent Register. 22 of 28 The scene of the crash from the air. 23 of 28 Bevan Lambess, witness to the horror crash. 24 of 28 ROBERT KITCHIN/Fairfax NZ Friends and family members at the scene of the fatal hot air balloon crash on Somerset Rd in Carterton. 25 of 28 ROBERT KITCHIN/Fairfax NZ Emergency services at the scene of the fatal hot air balloon crash on Somerset Rd in Carterton. 26 of 28 ROBERT KITCHIN/Fairfax NZ Friends and family members at the scene of the fatal hot air balloon crash on Somerset Rd in Carterton. 27 of 28 ROBERT KITCHIN/Fairfax NZ Emergency services at the scene of the fatal hot air balloon crash on Somerset Rd in Carterton. 28 of 28 ROBERT KITCHIN/Fairfax NZ Friends and family members at the scene of the fatal hot air balloon crash on Somerset Rd in Carterton.

SIX AVOIDABLE TRAGEDIES



The six other incidents over a decade which the Transport Accident Investigation Commission said were relevant to its call for significant reform of alcohol and drug regulation for aviation, rail and marine transport:



2012: The capsize and sinking of fishing boat Easy Rider in Foveaux Strait on March 15, 2012, in which eight people died and one survived. Of four bodies recovered, one passenger had a blood-alcohol reading 1.5 times the driving limit which was enough to impair decision-making and co-ordination, and to hasten hypothermia. Another passenger and one crew member had cannabis levels consistent with recent use, which may have affected their ability to escape the upturned boat.



2011: Track workers nearly struck by passenger train near Paekakariki on August 25, 2011. A worker responsible for declaring the track clear of workers did so without checking that was the case. He tested positive for cannabis and was found to be a regular user. KiwiRail has since introduced random testing.



2010: Crash of an aircraft at Fox Glacier aerodrome on September 4, 2010, in which the pilot and eight parachutists died. The pilot lost control during take-off and the aircraft crashed in a paddock next to the runway. Although not contributory to the accident, two of the tandem jumpmasters tested positive for cannabis.



2009: Collision between a jetboat and a jetski on the Kawarau River near Queenstown on January 5, 2009, in which two people died. Alcohol had been consumed but was not considered a cause.



2005: A Piper Seneca crashed into Mt Tauhara near Taupo aerodrome on February 2, 2005, killing the three people on board. No obvious cause could be determined. Autopsy reports showed the pilot had consumed cannabis, probably between 12 and 24 hours before the accident.



2002: A train derailed and plunged down a 12-metre bank at Te Wera in Taranaki on July 26, 2002. The driver died and a crew member was injured. The driver, who drank alcohol before work, lost attention and situational awareness consistent with falling asleep. He was estimated to have had a blood-alcohol level above the legal limit for driving road vehicles when he started his shift.