Balloon Pilot Craig Elliott Recounts Unforgettable Niagara Falls Flight in Memoir

Longtime hot-air balloon pilot Craig Elliott, known affectionately as "Captain Sunshine," is making a special return to Jackson this summer. Best known for his vivid airborne tales, including a jaw-dropping journey over Niagara Falls, Elliott is in town for the Jackson Hot Air Jubilee, where he'll promote his memoir The Balloonatics.

Elliott’s passion for ballooning began in 1976 as a crew member for Dr. John Hall shortly after graduating from Okemos High School. Over the decades, he amassed a remarkable career: earning pilot certifications, leading the Midwest’s largest passenger ride program at Balloon Corporation of America, and flying high-profile corporate balloons including Tony the Tiger, Michelob, and a Virgin Atlantic plane during the 1980s.

One of the standout chapters in The Balloonatics, which details 42 years of high-flying adventures, recounts a breathtaking flight over Niagara Falls in 1993 during the “Uplifting Buffalo” event. Launching from the Canadian bank of the river and drifting toward the U.S., Elliott flew mere 10 to 20 feet above the water.

As his balloon crossed the falls' edge, he described a powerful vibration from the falls “The entire balloon started shaking from the reverberations from the energy. I never felt that before in a balloon, but the whole thing was just like someone grabbed it and was shaking, it was crazy.”

His return to the Jackson Hot Air Jubilee, first attended back in 1983, marks a full-circle moment.

Though he won’t take to the skies this time, he’ll be launching his memoir during the event, a book he hopes resonates with everyone from ballooning novices to seasoned pilots.

Elliott’s memoir isn’t just about airborne thrills, it captures the camaraderie, competition, and serenity of life in a wicker basket.

An advance review from Mission Point Press summed it up nicely: the book delivers “hilarious tales of adventure, mishaps, and high-flying shenanigans from his forty-two years as a hot air balloon pilot.”

Balloon Pilot Craig Elliott Recounts Unforgettable Niagara Falls Flight in Memoir