Balloonist's 'split-second' decision to land in road

The hot air balloon was about two hours into its journey before it came down in an unexpected location in Bedford

A hot air balloon pilot landed in a narrow, car-lined, residential street after making a "split-second" safety decision.

Oliver Surridge, 40, said his training "kicked in" when he was forced to set down in Bower Street, Bedford, at about 09:30 BST on Saturday.

He had started his journey at about 07:15 from Great Staughton, Cambridgeshire, but a change in wind direction and then a lack of wind meant he had to think quickly.

He was trying to reach nearby Russell Park, but instead avoided houses, rooftops, cars, telegraph poles and cables, and set down without causing any damage "within Civil Aviation [CAA] guidelines", he said.

Mr Surridge, from Bedford, who has been in the industry for 10 years and a pilot for five, said he had one passenger and a ground crew of two men, who were following the flight in a car with a trailer.

"I was heading to the east side of Bedford, towards the Priory Marina area," he recalled.

"When I got to the edge of the town I came down lower and the wind took a massive direction to the right.

"I was creeping at low speed, and was looking to land, but the wind was just so light.

"We call it 'becalmed' when the wind stops... that's what happened in town, around the Castle Road area.

"The decision was taken as I had to land on the road safely and within the CAA guidelines.

"It was a split-second decision — you just go into autopilot."

Oliver Surridge said he was "confident I could get it down"

As the balloon flew over Bower Street, Eben Chinn came out of a house and Mr Surridge threw him his landing line.

"Because there was no wind, he could hold it in place and we managed the balloon down slowly, down between the wires, the cars and the houses," said the pilot.

"It was easier to handle from the ground."

Mr Surridge's actions were praised by eyewitnesses. Emma Firman, who filmed the episode, said "he did an excellent job".

Video footage shows the balloon about to land on cars, but people on the ground manage to manouevre its basket on to the tarmac in the middle of the road.

Eben Chinn was in Bower Street on Saturday morning when he saw something that did not "look right"

Mr Chinn, 22, said that when he saw the balloon he shouted to ask the pilot if he needed any help and Mr Surridge replied "can I throw you a rope?".

He caught it and held on to it.

"I was really struggling to pull it by myself, then two blokes ran in and helped me get it down on the ground.

"It was the weirdest thing, I did not expect to see it, but in the end it was all a bit of fun".

The balloon came in low over the Castle Road area of Bedford, before setting down in Bower Street

Mr Surridge said: "I want to give a massive thank you to everyone who helped.

"Eben and a few others assisted me so I didn't hit anything; they listened to me perfectly."

He confirmed the only damage was a small burn mark in his balloon when it deflated so quickly on landing.

"I've been left feeling absolutely relieved; you're always learning," he said.

"It's one of those things — it happens but not very often; you have to follow your planning and then let your training come into play."

The British Balloon & Airship Club confirmed the craft "landed without incident" and that everyone on board was OK.

The CAA has been approached for comment.