Flying Over Coachella: A View from the Blimp

Los Angeles Times reporter Mikael Wood and colleagues Rebecca Castillo and Kayla Bartkowski took a flight in the Goodyear blimp over the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on Saturday, April 11, 2026.

The excursion began at the Jacqueline Cochran Regional Airport in Thermal, California, where the airship departed from a large dirt field. The flight lasted approximately 30 minutes, providing an aerial perspective of the desert festival grounds.

The Goodyear blimp, a famous dirigible operated by the tire company, has a passenger capacity of approximately six to eight people. Wood described the experience as gentle, comparing the sensation to a boat ride in a harbor.

Safety Requirements and Boarding

Before boarding the airship, passengers were required to watch a safety video. A primary restriction highlighted in the briefing was that high heels are not permitted on the blimp.

For those who arrived wearing heels, Goodyear representatives offered alternative arrangements. One representative reported that she had already loaned out her sneakers several times on Saturday to accommodate passengers.

Aerial Observations of the Festival

During the flight over the Coachella festival, the reporters observed hundreds of fans, referred to as Beliebers, who had camped out near the main stage. These fans were positioned as close to the stage as possible, arriving nine to 10 hours before the scheduled performance of Justin Bieber.

The height of the blimp provided a scale that made the crowds below appear small, while highlighting the significant level of anticipation for the artist’s appearance.

Disembarkation and Passenger Turnover

Upon returning to the ground at the Jacqueline Cochran Regional Airport, passengers disembarked in pairs. This process allowed the crew to efficiently transition to new passengers who had been invited to experience the ride.

The transition was marked by high enthusiasm from the incoming passengers, contrasting with the reaction of Wood’s husband, who was described as potentially being a seasoned airship rider.

The trip was organized through the company’s social media representatives, including a woman in charge of the blimp’s social presence who invited the Los Angeles Times team to join the cruise.