The balloon boy hoax was an incident that occurred on October 15, 2009, in Fort Collins, Colorado, when the parents of a six-year-old boy, Falcon Heene, falsely claimed that he had floated away in a home-made balloon. The event attracted world-wide attention. At the time, it was reported that Falcon Heene was apparently traveling at altitudes reaching in a homemade helium balloon colored and shaped to resemble a silver flying saucer-type of UFO. Falcon was nicknamed "Balloon Boy" by some in the media.

After an hours-long flight that covered more than across three counties, the balloon landed about northeast of Denver International Airport. Authorities closed down the Denver airport, and sent several National Guard helicopters and local police in pursuit. After the balloon landed, and the boy was found to not be inside, authorities began a manhunt of the entire area, raising fears that he had fallen from the balloon; it was reported that an object had detached from the balloon and fallen to the ground. Later that afternoon the boy was eventually reported to have been hiding at his house the entire time. The saga was reported by news media around the world.

Suspicions soon arose that the incident was a hoax and publicity stunt engineered by the boy's father, Richard Heene, particularly following the Heenes' interview with Wolf Blitzer on Larry King Live that evening. In response to a question about why he was hiding, Falcon said to his father, "You guys said that, um, we did this for the show." On October 18, Larimer County sheriff Jim Alderden announced his conclusion that the incident was a hoax, and that the parents would likely face several felony charges. Richard Heene pleaded guilty on November 13, 2009, to the charge of attempting to influence a public servant.

Background

Falcon Heene's parents, Richard Heene and Mayumi Iizuka, first met at an acting school in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California and married on October 12 1997 in Clark County, Nevada. Richard Heene had pursued careers in acting and stand-up comedy without success, and, for a time, he and his wife ran a business out of his home producing demo reels for actors. Heene is a handyman and an amateur scientist, whom associates have called "a shameless self-promoter who would do almost anything to advance his latest endeavor". Heene is a storm chaser who started in the 1970s after a storm ripped the roof off of a building he was working on. Heene's storm chasing has included riding a motorcycle into a tornado and reportedly flying a plane around the perimeter of Hurricane Wilma in 2005. Heene regularly involved his children in his endeavors, taking them along on UFO-hunting expeditions and storm-chasing missions.

The family had been featured twice on the reality television show Wife Swap, the second time as a fan-favorite choice for the show's 100th episode. During his time on the show, Heene expressed his belief that humanity descended from aliens, and spoke of launching home-made flying saucers into storms. Heene had unsuccessfully sought the media's interest in a proposed reality show called "The Science Detectives", which he envisioned as a documentary series "to investigate the mysteries of science". Months before the balloon incident on October 15, 2009, Heene pitched a reality show idea to the television channel TLC, but TLC passed on the offer. After the balloon incident, the producer of Wife Swap said that a show involving the Heenes had been in development, but that the deal was now off. The producer declined to provide specifics. The Lifetime channel had been set to air one of the Wife Swap episodes involving the Heenes on October 29, 2009; they pulled the episode as a result of the balloon incident.

The helium balloon

Richard Heene stated the saucer-shaped balloon was an early prototype in an experiment for an alternative form of transportation, in which "people can pull out of their garage and hover above traffic" at about . He also stated that, once "the high voltage timer" was switched on, the balloon "would emit one million volts every five minutes for one minute" in order to "move left and right — horizontal".

The balloon measured in diameter and in height, and was constructed from plastic tarps taped together, covered with an aluminum foil, and held together with string and duct tape. The base of the balloon, which Falcon allegedly crawled into, was a utility box made from a very thin piece of plywood and cardboard on the side. It was held together with string and duct tape.

If fully inflated, a balloon of this size would contain just over of helium. Helium's lift capacity at sea level and 0°C is 1.113 kg/m³ (0.07 lbs/ft³) and decreases at higher altitudes and at higher temperatures. The volume of helium in the balloon has been estimated as being sufficient to lift a total load, including the balloon itself and the structure beneath it, of at sea level, and at .

Fort Collins is at an elevation of about , and the balloon was estimated to have reached an altitude of as high as .

Incident

The family said that they first became aware Falcon Heene was missing when, immediately after the balloon had taken off, Falcon's brother told them that he had seen the six year old climb into the basket of the balloon beforehand. Home video released the following day shows the launch of the balloon. Richard inspects the basket, then his family count down in unison "three, two, one" before releasing the cord. Apparently believing the balloon to be tethered a few feet from the ground, the family starts screaming in distress when it floats off into the sky. Richard Heene, who can be seen kicking the wood frame that supported the balloon, yelled, "You didn't put the fucking tether down!". Falcon is nowhere to be seen, and nobody mentions the possibility of Falcon being in the runaway balloon.

According to initial reports from the sheriff, the family first called the Federal Aviation Administration, although later the sheriff's office stated that "they had no confirmation that Richard Heene actually made the call to the FAA.". They then called Denver NBC affiliate KUSA-TV; they reportedly requested that the station send a news helicopter to track the balloon's progress, and then called emergency services. During the call to 911 at 11:29 AM local time (MDT) Richard Heene said "I don't know whether it's possible you guys could detect the electricity that it emits ... it emits a million volts on the outer skin."

The balloon, tracked by helicopters, drifted for , passing through Adams County and Weld County. Planes were rerouted around the balloon's flight path, and Denver International Airport was briefly shut down. It finally landed two hours later at around 1:35 PM local time near Keenesburg, northeast of Denver International Airport.

When the boy was not found inside the balloon, officials expressed concern that he might have fallen out during flight. Although it was reported that it did not appear breached, Margie Martinez of the Weld County Sheriff's Office said that the door was unlocked in the balloon. A sheriff deputy reported seeing something fall from the balloon near Platteville, Colorado, and a photograph of the balloon in flight with a small black dot below was said to suggest the boy may have fallen out or that something had detached from the balloon. Search and rescue crews in Colorado searched for the boy.

At approximately 4:14 PM, CNN and other news reported that the boy was found hiding in a cardboard box in rafters above the garage, but county sheriff Jim Alderden later said, "For all we know he may have been two blocks down the road playing on the swing in the city park."

The New York Post estimated that the total cost of the rescue operation would be about $2 million, however, this has yet to be verified. The helicopter flights alone during the rescue operation cost about USD $14,500. The Colorado National Guard assisted the effort with UH-60 Black Hawk and OH-58 Kiowa helicopters.

Hoax allegations and criminal investigation

After the incident, several news agencies began questioning whether it was a hoax. As Editor & Publisher pointed out, "Few had raised the issue of whether such a balloon could even lift off with a 50-pound kid inside, and then float the way it did" during the flight. The police initially said it did not appear to be a hoax. However, when Falcon and his family were being interviewed by Wolf Blitzer on CNN's Larry King Live, he asked Falcon, "Why did you not come out of the garage?" After his parents repeated the question, he responded by saying "You guys said that, um, we did this for the show." The next day, during interviews on ABC's Good Morning America and NBC's Today, the boy vomited when he was asked about his comment, and again when his father was asked about it, fueling more suspicion.

Falcon's answers prompted the sheriff's office to pursue further investigations as to whether the incident was part of a publicity stunt. On October 16, Alderden said, "the suggestion that the boy ... was coached to hide seems inconceivable." Alderden indicated on October 17 that search warrants were being drawn and that charges would likely be filed with regard to this incident. The charges had not yet been released to the public. The sheriff confirmed that making a false report to authorities would result in Class 3 misdemeanor charges and expressed that this charge "hardly seems serious enough given the circumstances."

A researcher named Robert Thomas sold a story to Gawker.com alleging that he had helped plan a publicity stunt involving a weather balloon. Investigators have expressed a desire to interview Thomas. According to Thomas, Heene was a fan of David Icke who was motivated by fears stemming from the 2012 phenomenon to raise money to build a bunker as a survivalist strategy for 2012. In 2008, Heene had participated in a six-part series on YouTube titled "2012 - The Best Evidence - by The Psyience Detectives."

Larimer County sheriff's officials had consulted a Colorado State University physics professor who initially determined, based on the dimensions provided by Richard Heene, that the balloon could plausibly lift off with a boy of Falcon's reported size ( ). However, when authorities later measured the balloon, they concluded it was not large enough to lift the child. Upon inspecting the balloon, authorities learned it weighed more than Heene originally said. Alderden said the base of the balloon could have handled 37 pounds without breaking, but in order to go airborne with those 37 pounds inside it would have had to have been attached to a more powerful balloon.

After viewing the home video of the balloon launch, Alderden said it appeared the balloon, which was supposed to have a child inside it, was rising very quickly.

During a press conference on October 18, Alderden called the incident a hoax, stating "we believe we have evidence at this point to indicate that this was a publicity stunt in hopes to better market themselves for a reality show." He also said that charges in the case have not yet been filed, but that the parents could face both misdemeanor and felony charges, including conspiracy to commit a crime, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, filing a false report with authorities, and attempting to influence a public servant. Alderden stated that his comments on October 16 were part of a "game plan" to keep the Heenes' trust.

Richard Heene's lawyer, David Lane, announced on October 19 that Richard and Mayumi Heene would surrender to police as soon as charges are filed. Lane said it would be "abusive" if the Heenes were handcuffed where their children and the news media could watch. Lane said they would plead not guilty.

The balloon incident is also under investigation by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration. FAA rules prohibit flying balloons or kites within of an airport.

According to the supporting affidavit that law enforcement submitted with their application for a search warrant, Mayumi later admitted that she "knew all along that Falcon was hiding in the residence." The affidavit alleges that the couple planned the hoax about two weeks before releasing the balloon on October 15, and "instructed their three children to lie to authorities as well as the media regarding this hoax," for the purpose of making the family "more marketable for future media interests."

Guilty plea

Richard Heene's attorney announced on November 12, 2009 that both parents intended to plead guilty to the charges filed against them, for which the prosecutor would recommend probation. The attorney's statement said that the threat of deportation of his wife, Mayumi Heene, who is a Japanese citizen, was a factor in the plea negotiations. On November 13, Richard Heene pleaded guilty to a felony charge of attempting to influence a public servant, Mayumi Heene did not appear with him, and still faces a misdemeanor charge of false reporting to authorities.

Judge Stephen Schapanski allowed the couple to remain free on bond until sentencing, which is scheduled for December 23. It is expected that the punishment will include jail time, and repayment of some of the estimated $62,000 incurred by authorities in the balloon chase.

Internet and media attention

For hours, the incident received extensive media coverage in many parts of the world, with local TV helicopters broadcasting live video of the balloon and rescue operation. As pointed out by Editor & Publisher shortly after the craft was found to be empty, "only after the crash did TV hosts stress that reports of [a] boy in it were 'unverified' and raised the possibility of hoax."

The incident also sparked a "balloon boy" Internet meme, as the events were closely followed in blogs and social networking sites in real time, generating speculation, image editing jokes and parodies of the story, which started even when the boy's safety was uncertain. "Balloon boy" became the No. 1 search on Google within hours of the event and 34 of the top 40 searches on Google were related to Falcon Heene and the incident. During the October 17, 2009, episode of Saturday Night Live, the incident was mentioned in the opening sketch and twice during "Weekend Update". A model replica of the balloon hovered around anchor and SNL head writer Seth Myers and said, "Seth, it was a hoax", to which Myers replied, "we know." The Balloon Boy events were also imitated with iPhone apps, like "Balloon Boys", which allow users to create hoax balloon photos.

Experts and commentators criticized the media's vetting process, questioned the separation between journalism and reality television, and raised concerns about the exploitation of children for news stories. Robert Thompson of the Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture at Syracuse University, said that the incident "was a wake-up call to the media but it's a wake-up call that every single one of us is going to sleep through." Thompson blamed technology rather than the media for the problem: "There are two technological phenomena driving this -- one is television satellite trucks and the ability to broadcast from anywhere, and two is an unlimited number of platforms to place this stuff."

References

1. Balloon Boys iPhone App, press release MarketWire

External links

• Uncut home video of the balloon's liftoff, released to media by the Heene family
• Audio of the Heenes' 911 emergency call, released by the Larimer County Sheriff's Office
• Larimer Sheriff
• Heene 2009 Affidavit