United flight’s cockpit window may have been struck by weather balloon, company says

SALT LAKE CITY —

A mysterious object that cracked a windshield on a United Airlines flight, injuring a pilot and forcing an emergency landing, may have been a weather balloon.

WindBorne, a California start-up focused on advanced weather forecasting and atmospheric data collection, said in a statement Monday it believes one of its balloons likely hit the plane.

United Flight 1093, a Boeing 737 traveling from Denver to Los Angeles, landed safely in Utah Thursday with 134 passengers and six crew members onboard, according to the airline.

Air traffic control audio from LiveATC.net showed the pilots remained calm and declared an emergency as they diverted to land at Salt Lake City.

The first officer in the cockpit was treated for minor injuries upon the plane’s landing, the Salt Lake Cit