AN Odiham pensioner had the surprise of her life last week -- when a Virgin hot air balloon landed in her garden!

Fourteen balloon-flight passengers duly climbed out of the basket to be greeted by Helen Bide, who had rushed into her garden after seeing it coming down.

The balloon had set off early last Saturday morning from the Virgin base at Anstey Park, Alton, to offer passengers beautiful aerial views of the town and surrounding countryside.

It is believed that as it was gaining height it may have clipped trees which tore part of the fabric. So pilot Steve Richards, having just flown over RAF Odiham, decided to land and found the perfect spot - Mrs Bide’s two-acre garden complete with its wide lawn.

Quickly on the scene were the Virgin team, who follow all the balloon rides over land and keep in touch with the pilot by radio.

After checking everyone was fine, they loaded up the balloon and basket onto their vehicle for the ride back to Alton.

Mrs Bide, who said she was glad that it missed her greenhouse, thanked Steve for bringing the balloon down safely.

“It was landed beautifully,” she said.

In a statement, a Virgin representative said: “Our balloon landed in a large garden in Odiham under the full control of our highly-experienced pilot at the end of a flight.

“Hot air balloons travel with the wind and are permitted under aviation law to land, within reason, wherever the pilot sees a suitable space. This is often on private land and we always gain permission from the landowner to remove our balloon.

“The homeowner that weekend, while obviously surprised to see our balloon in her garden, was lovely, very welcoming, and happy to allow our crew access to retrieve it.

“While a lot of our landings often take place out in the open countryside, sometimes they do happen in more built-up areas and this is when they tend to cause the most excitement, as they are quite a spectacle due to their size.”