United Airlines flight UA1093 from Denver to Los Angeles was diverted to Salt Lake City after the cockpit windshield cracked at an altitude of 36,000 feet. One of the pilots was injured during the incident, and emergency precautions were taken for flight safety.
Weather forecasting company WindBorneWx announced that the impact was caused by a weather balloon. The investigation is still ongoing.
WindBorneWx stated that its operational balloons use sand as ballast. The paint damage observed on the cockpit windshield was reportedly caused by sand that fell from the balloon. Authorities noted that air traffic controllers might not have received the balloon’s position data in time.
