A rainbow-coloured balloon might stand out among the aircraft that typically lands at Queenstown Airport, but Sunrise Balloons chief pilot and co-owner Carrick McLellan said landing at the airport today was nothing out of the ordinary for hot-air balloons.
Members of the public contacted the Otago Daily Times this morning after what was presumed to be an emergency landing of a hot-air balloon at the airport.
However, Mr McLellan confirmed there was no emergency today.
His balloon could have landed at nearby Jacks Point this morning, but that option would have added up to 30 minutes to his flight and the airport was great to deal with.
"I was in communication with the airport all the time, and they gave me permission to land, and since it's nice and flat . . . and I'm an aircraft, after all, that's what I did: land.
"You fly the balloon according to which way the wind is taking you and when a landing spot presents itself, you take it."
A Queenstown Airport spokeswoman said the balloon landing took place about 25 minutes before the first passenger aircraft flight was due to depart the airport.
Aviation Security Service was able to clear the runway before the first flight took off, she said.
