Hot air balloon carrying tourists makes emergency landing in downtown Santa Rosa

A hot air balloon with at least two passengers and a pilot made an emergency landing Thursday morning in a parking lot in downtown Santa Rosa. No one was injured when the balloon came down safely in the small lot in front of the Sears Auto Center at Santa Rosa Plaza, about 100 yards east of Highway 101.

“They were having wind issues and wanted to land in a safe spot,” said Officer Jesse Whitten of the Santa Rosa Police Department. “Having a hot air balloon land in downtown Santa Rosa is a first for me.”

The landing left little margin for error. A wall on one side of the lot forms the eastern border of Highway 101 and a three-story parking garage stands on the opposite side of the lot. The pilot refused to identify himself or answer questions.

Police said the balloon was being operated by AD Astra Productions.

Bill Campbell and his wife were passengers visiting from Tennessee, and were looking for a “tourist trip” in the skies above Sonoma County. But Campbell’s account of the trip was cut short at the landing site when the pilot interrupted the interview and told the man to “just shut up” and not answer anymore questions.

Most operators would file a report with the Federal Aviation Administration after an emergency landing of this nature, said Ian Gregor, spokesman with the FAA Pacific Division.

“We would certainly investigate an incident like this,” Gregor said by email.