One of the pilots in the sport balloon that caught fire Monday night says someone was shooting at them moments before they made an emergency landing.
Krzystotf Zapart says it was gunfire, not mechanical failure, that brought his adventure in a multi-state balloon race to an abrupt end.
He is a pilot for the Polish national team in the prestigious Gordon Bennett Gas Balloon Race that launched Saturday in New Mexico. Zapart and his co-pilot, Pjotr Halas, were flying over Kaufman County when he says they had to think fast. "We heard more and more automatic guns," Zapart said. "It was not one shot. It was, ‘Do, do, do, do, do, do!’""I know that all people in, not all people, most people in the West thinking about Chinese spy balloons. I think it is a big problem for us," Zapart said.That's when they saw an electrical substation and tried to avoid it."I watched sparks of the balloon inside the balloon exploding at this time," Zapart said.
"It was relieving being able to see him in much better condition than the night of the accident," Alfaro said. "We thank God we were able to help him out. And there at the right time. A spokeswoman for the NTSB said it is investigating what happened and looking for any video from witnesses. DAILY NEWSLETTER
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