United jet’s cracked windshield at 36,000 feet blamed on balloon

A United Airlines flight from Denver to Los Angeles was forced to make an emergency landing in Salt Lake City after an object struck its windshield at 36,000 feet, cracking the glass and injuring one pilot. The incident occurred on flight 1093 and prompted an immediate descent and diversion. Initial speculation about the cause included space debris and birds, but new evidence points to a weather balloon operated by WindBorne Systems as the likely source of the collision. WindBorne Systems, which develops long-duration smart weather balloons, acknowledged the possibility that one of its balloons was involved and is cooperating with the FAA and NTSB in the investigation. The company has already implemented operational changes to reduce balloon time spent between 30,000 and 40,000 feet and is accelerating efforts to use live flight data for autonomous plane avoidance and to improve balloon hardware to minimize impact forces. The damaged windshield has been sent to the NTSB lab for detailed analysis. Despite the severity of the damage, no fatalities occurred