Hot air balloon hits tree, lands on Solano County golf course

A scenic hot air balloon ride turned into a frightening experience for a Vacaville couple Saturday morning when the balloon hit a tree before making a hard landing on a Solano County golf course. KCRA 3 obtained videos of that landing from passengers. Zachary and London Kellis said they were on board the balloon when it struck a tree near Fairfield and later landed on the driving range at Green Valley Country Club.“We brushed up against the top of the tree once and then the big one,” Zachary Kellis said. “We hit a big, big tree. We just kind of slammed into it, and a lot of branches broke.”Video recorded from inside the basket shows the couple bracing themselves. Video recorded from the ground also captured the balloon making contact with the tree.The flight began in Napa Valley in Yountville and ended in Solano County.The couple said the most frightening moment came without warning.“There was no warning for us,” Zachary Kellis said. “It was no, ‘Hey, we’re about to hit a tree. You get down.’ It was just that we slammed into it,” said London Kellis.After the impact, the balloon remained in the air briefly before landing on the golf course, the couple said.“After that big crash, it was probably 2 minutes more before we landed in the driving range,” Zachary Kellis said.The couple said the basket tipped sharply during the landing, leaving them shaken and briefly fearing they could fall out.Asked whether they feared for their lives, Zachary Kellis said, “At one point when the tree hit, yeah, a little bit.”London Kellis said the basket offered no restraint if it tipped over.“The basket can tip, and nothing is securing you in there,” she said. “So if we end up landing in the tree and the basket tips over, we’re falling out. There’s no holding us in there.”After the landing, firefighters responded and collected information from passengers, the couple said. They said they were troubled by how the incident was described afterward.“The pilot got a little irritated about that,” Zachary Kellis said. “He came over and asked why we were having our information was being taken, and the firefighter responded that they have to notate it because of the accident. And he said there was no accident. There was no crash.”In a statement to KCRA 3, Napa Valley Aloft said no passengers, crew members, or people on the ground were injured.“There was no emergency landing and no injuries to passengers, crew members, or anyone on the ground,” the company said. “During the flight, the balloon encountered a localized downdraft and shifting wind conditions, resulting in brief contact between the basket and a tree.”The company said the situation “was handled professionally by the pilot” and that “incidental contact with vegetation can occasionally occur during balloon operations and does not necessarily constitute an emergency situation.”The couple said they believe the company has not adequately acknowledged what they experienced.“I think it would have been nice to have just some sort of outreach,” London Kellis said. “I feel like it was a little odd to hear nothing afterwards and just call it a typical event.” KCRA 3 also contacted the Federal Aviation Administration, which said it had no report of an incident from Saturday.See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel

FAIRFIELD, Calif. —

A scenic hot air balloon ride turned into a frightening experience for a Vacaville couple Saturday morning when the balloon hit a tree before making a hard landing on a Solano County golf course. KCRA 3 obtained videos of that landing from passengers.

Zachary and London Kellis said they were on board the balloon when it struck a tree near Fairfield and later landed on the driving range at Green Valley Country Club.

“We brushed up against the top of the tree once and then the big one,” Zachary Kellis said. “We hit a big, big tree. We just kind of slammed into it, and a lot of branches broke.”

Video recorded from inside the basket shows the couple bracing themselves. Video recorded from the ground also captured the balloon making contact with the tree.

The flight began in Napa Valley in Yountville and ended in Solano County.

The couple said the most frightening moment came without warning.

“There was no warning for us,” Zachary Kellis said. “It was no, ‘Hey, we’re about to hit a tree. You get down.’ It was just that we slammed into it,” said London Kellis.

After the impact, the balloon remained in the air briefly before landing on the golf course, the couple said.

“After that big crash, it was probably 2 minutes more before we landed in the driving range,” Zachary Kellis said.

The couple said the basket tipped sharply during the landing, leaving them shaken and briefly fearing they could fall out.

Asked whether they feared for their lives, Zachary Kellis said, “At one point when the tree hit, yeah, a little bit.”

London Kellis said the basket offered no restraint if it tipped over.

“The basket can tip, and nothing is securing you in there,” she said. “So if we end up landing in the tree and the basket tips over, we’re falling out. There’s no holding us in there.”

After the landing, firefighters responded and collected information from passengers, the couple said. They said they were troubled by how the incident was described afterward.

“The pilot got a little irritated about that,” Zachary Kellis said. “He came over and asked why we were having our information was being taken, and the firefighter responded that they have to notate it because of the accident. And he said there was no accident. There was no crash.”

In a statement to KCRA 3, Napa Valley Aloft said no passengers, crew members, or people on the ground were injured.

“There was no emergency landing and no injuries to passengers, crew members, or anyone on the ground,” the company said. “During the flight, the balloon encountered a localized downdraft and shifting wind conditions, resulting in brief contact between the basket and a tree.”

The company said the situation “was handled professionally by the pilot” and that “incidental contact with vegetation can occasionally occur during balloon operations and does not necessarily constitute an emergency situation.”

The couple said they believe the company has not adequately acknowledged what they experienced.

“I think it would have been nice to have just some sort of outreach,” London Kellis said. “I feel like it was a little odd to hear nothing afterwards and just call it a typical event.”

KCRA 3 also contacted the Federal Aviation Administration, which said it had no report of an incident from Saturday.

See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel