Hot air balloon with 13 onboard makes emergency landing in backyard thanks to ‘masterful’ pilot

NewsWorldAmericasHot air balloon with 13 onboard makes emergency landing in backyard thanks to ‘masterful’ pilotAfter safely disembarking the passengers, the pilot skillfully returned the balloon aloft before landing it nearby in the street for dismantlingIndependent Staff Monday 20 April 2026 20:51 BSTBookmarkCommentsGo to commentsBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popover{"translations":{"comments":"Go to comments","share":"Share","copyLink":"Copy link","bookmark":"Bookmark","removeBookmark":"Remove bookmark"},"showComments":true,"showBookmark":true,"articleId":"b2961372","articleMeta":{"url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/hot-air-balloon-emergency-landing-california-b2961372.html","title":"Hot air balloon with 13 onboard makes emergency landing in backyard"}}CloseMoment hot air balloon lands in residential streetThe latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekdayYour briefing on the latest headlines from across the USYour briefing on the latest headlines from across the USEmail*SIGN UPI would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice{"className":"sc-1ge0fwe-0","newsletterData":{"regSourceNewsletter":"IND_Evening_Newsletter","regTitle":"Evening Headlines","subscriptionGroup":"us_evening_headlines","subscriptionGroupId":"4326e634-422a-4447-8e1e-604a937cd3b5","type":"daily_news","pathPrefix":["/us","/news/world/americas","/news/world/americas/crime"],"title":"The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday","mobileTitle":"Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US","imageSrc":"https://static.independent.co.uk/static-assets/images/newsletters/usEveningHeadlines1_1.png","label":"I would like to receive morning headlines Monday - Friday plus breaking news alerts by email","newsletterKey":"receiveEveningHeadlinesUSNews","regSourceSection":"Americas","regSourceMethod":"NSCs"},"isClimat...