And the father’s admission of calling the FAA before 911 was called.
re: calling the FAA before 911
I think he knew full well the kid wasn’t on it, but also knew full well he would be very guilty of several things for launching that balloon. It would provide a very poor primary return on ATC radar and it’s not the sort of thing a pilot is looking for, or expects to see, on approach to Denver or some other area airport! Just imagine the liability if the balloon was struck by an aircraft!