Hot air balloon flight above Stamford ends with 999 dash

A balloon flight came to a dramatic end last night (Tuesday) as police officers rushed to reports of an alleged accident.

Anxious on-lookers called 999 fearing the hot air balloon had crash-landed in fields to the north of Stamford.

Thankfully the officers arrived at the scene to find it was a false alarm and the pilot had landed safely.

A spokesman for Virgin Balloon Flights said: "It seems our big red hot air balloon caused some excitement last night when our pilot carried out a completely normal landing in a field near Stamford.

"All our 16 passengers had enjoyed a wonderful flight over stunning countryside, having launched around an hour earlier from Ferry Meadows in Peterborough.

"They were about to enjoy a traditional post-landing toast of bubbly with the pilot and crew when the police unexpectedly arrived, having apparently been contacted by a member of the public who mistakenly thought there was a problem.

"Hot air balloons can’t be steered in the traditional sense, instead travelling where the wind takes them before the pilot brings them in safely to land where they spot a large enough, clear and open space.

"We appreciate this isn’t something you see every day and on this occasion, a call appears to have been made to police with good intent and it was quickly apparent to the officers who attended that there was nothing to be concerned about."

The Virgin balloon came down behind the homes on Kesteven Road shortly before 7pm before lifting up again to find an alternative landing spot.

The spokesman added: "While there was no reason for concern, thank you to Lincolnshire Police for attending to make sure everyone was okay, although they were obviously very busy and were unable to accept the pilot’s invitation to stay for the toast with a soft drink alternative."