In the enchanting realm of ballooning, where dreams soar as high as the skies themselves, Bert Padelt’s name resonates with innovation and adventure. Padelt’s
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Bert Padelt Talks About His Atlantic Explorer Balloon
Acclaimed US balloon manufacturer and balloonist Bert Padelt talks with Sitara Maruf about the Torabhaig Atlantic Explorer Gas Balloon which he will copilot with
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Invention of the Hot Air Balloon
Joseph Montgolfière did not like school and work and was deemed worthless in life; however, he was intelligent, curious, and inventive. He and his brother Étienne invented the hot-air balloon. On 4th June 1783 in Annonay, France, the brothers launched their huge hot-air balloon which soared to 10,000 feet and flew for 10 minutes covering a distance of one-and-a-half miles. It was Joseph’s inventive genius that gave humanity its first balloon to fly humans, and their public-flying spectacle ushered in an era of manned flight. In honor of the Montgolfière’s invention and the success of the first manned flight in a Montgolfière balloon, the modern hot-air balloon is called the Montgolfière.
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A Japanese War Weapon and Don Piccard’s Famous Flight
Seventy years ago, Donald Piccard, barely 21, modified the envelope of a Japanese balloon bomb for a balloon flight over Minneapolis and earned the nation’s first Free Balloon Pilot Certificate. The student pilot flew solo for two hours and 10 minutes in a paper and hydrogen balloon for the first time, creating history and reactivating the sport of ballooning in the United States. But the balloon that he flew also brought to light another interesting story–this one from its prior service as a Japanese balloon bomb!
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Arctic Air: Andrée’s Balloon Flight to North Pole | New Exhibition at Balloon Museum
When the bold balloon flight of S.A. Andrée began on July 11, 1897, no one had yet reached the North Pole. There had been other attempts, all unsuccessful, but this expedition intended to fly there by balloon from Danes Island, an icy outpost at nearly the top of the world.
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Balloon Museum Celebrates High-Flying Pioneers
A lot of the science and space research involving balloons also needed daring humans to fly to the edge of space, test instruments, and experience the effects of the dangerous near-space environment on human physiology. Some even lost their lives in their effort to contribute to our knowledge of space travel, astronomy, astrophysics, and human physiology at high altitudes.
Read More / WatchBritish Tourist Dies in Hot-Air Balloon Crash
South Africa–A British woman has died after being seriously injured in a hot-air balloon crash in the North West. Two other people–a four-year-old girl and her mother have also been injured. The balloon had almost landed but strong winds dragged the gondola along the ground and some passengers fell out.
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Helium-filled Airship, the Largest Aircraft, Makes Historic First Flight
The world’s largest and futuristic aircraft, as tall as a nine-story building and almost the length and breadth of a football field, rose slowly but majestically over the Cardington airfield in central England at 7:40 p.m. on 17th August 2016. Filled with the safe and non-flammable gas helium, the impressive blimp-shaped airship, flew within a six-mile area…
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16 People Die in Second-Deadliest Hot-Air Balloon Crash
On 30th July 2016, Saturday, a hot-air balloon carrying 16 people struck power lines and crashed in a pasture near Lockhart, in central Texas, around 7:40 a.m. local time (8:40 a.m. ET), according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). A witness who lives near the site said she heard a loud pop and noticed a fireball.
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Russian Adventurer Sets New
Round-the-World Balloon Flight Record
After flying the Rozière hot-air balloon, solo and nonstop around the world, for more than 11 days and over a distance of 20,502 miles (32,996 kilometers), Russian adventurer Fedor Konyukhov landed his aircraft on Saturday, 23rd July at 4:15 p.m., near the small town of Bonnie Rock, in Western Australia’s Wheatbelt.
In doing so, Konyukhov beat the 2002 record for a round-the-world hot-air balloon flight by the late American adventurer Steve Fossett. Konyukhov completed the circumnavigation in 11 days, five hours, and 32 minutes.
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