Modern Mysteries

New Netflix documentary explores the case of the 'balloon boy'

By T.K. Randall
July 15, 2025

Image: AI-generated (Midjourney) The bizarre incident, which occurred back in October 2009, involved 6-year-old Falcon Heene who was thought to have crawled inside a large, helium-filled, UFO-shaped balloon that had been constructed by his father as part of a back yard experiment.

The alarm had been raised when a search of the house failed to find any sign of the youngster and his brother claimed that he had crawled into the balloon before it had lifted off.

The balloon went on to reach an altitude of 7,000ft, leaving the boy's family absolutely terrified.As the day progressed, National Guard helicopters pursued the balloon, as did the police, until it eventually came down on its own around 50 miles from where it had started out.

When the authorities looked inside, they couldn't believe their eyes - the young boy wasn't there.

The ensuing drama is the focus of a new Netflix documentary: Trainwreck: Balloon Boy, which is streaming now.

You can check out the trailer below.


Source: LadBible

Tags: Balloon, UFO