Published: Just now
Marko and his girlfriend Suzanna flew a hot air balloon over Stockholm this evening.
But the trip ended dramatically when the balloon crashed into a wooded area.
– It was really scary, you had a lot of thoughts in your head, says Marko.
At 7pm this evening, Marko, 29, and his girlfriend Suzanna boarded a hot air balloon in Ålsten, Bromma.
– We would fly for about an hour, maybe one and a half and land in Nacka, says Marko.
But the trip did not turn out as they had imagined.
The balloon pilot failed to land where intended.
– I think he had a little too much speed. We kind of bounced back up and then the basket hit a post so he dropped his computer, says Marko.
“Hold on now, we’re going to land”
The journey continued and the pilot looked for a new landing site as darkness began to settle over the capital.
– We flew past some place, but there were power lines so it didn’t work, says Marko.
After additional time, the pilot must have seen a suitable place, out in the Stockholm archipelago.
– It looked like a green meadow, but it turned out to be sharp in the water.
At the last moment, the pilot bailed and instead the balloon ended up in a tree at the edge of the beach.
– It was unpleasant, you could hear branches snapping and he said “hold on, now we’re going to land”, says Marko.
He says that he had time to think many thoughts.
– It was lucky that the basket did not tip over or something else more serious happened.
When Aftonbladet reaches Marko by phone, he is out of breath, but still in good spirits, despite the circumstances.
– We will try to get a taxi now and go back to Bromma. And one thing is certain. I will never fly a balloon again.
Aftonbladet has sought the company that organized the balloon ride.