South Africa Hot Air Balloon History

September 19, 1783 ~ A sheep, a duck, and a rooster become the first passengers in a hot air balloon launched by the Montgolfier brothers, Joseph and Ettienne.

November 21,1783 ~ The first recorded manned flight in a hot air balloon took place in Paris. Built from paper and silk by the Montgolfier brothers, this balloon was piloted on a 22 minute flight by two noblemen from the court of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. From the center of Paris they ascended 500 feet above the roof tops before eventually landing miles away in the vineyards. Local farmers were very suspicious of this fiery dragon descending from the sky. The pilots offered champagne to placate them and to celebrate the first human flight, a tradition carried on to this day.

January 19, 1784 ~ In Lyon, France, the only recorded flight by Joseph Montgolfier was made in one of the largest balloons ever made.

September 15, 1784 ~ An Italian, Vincenzo Lunardi, made the first balloon flight outside of France. The 500 cubic metre balloon flew from Moorfields in England and landed near Ware.

November 30, 1784 ~ Launching their balloon from Rhedarium Garden, London, another Frenchman, Jean-Pierre Blanchard, and an American, John Jeffries, make their first flight.

January 7, 1785 ~ the same team of Jean-Pierre Blanchard and John Jeffries became the first to fly across the English Channel.

January 9, 1793 ~ the first flight of a balloon in North America occured in Philadelphia and was piloted by Jean-Pierre Blanchard.

October 10, 1960 ~ the official birth date of the modern hot-air balloon. The first man-carrying free flight took place at Bruning, Nebraska, in the Raven prototype ‘modern’ hot-air balloon. The 30,000 cu ft envelope was constructed of a polyurethane coated nylon and the burner was propane powered.

By 1963, the growing sport was able to sustain the first U.S. national championships.

The balloons used for passenger flights today were developed in the United States during the 1960s and have two main technological advances: using rip-stop nylon, a very safe and reliable material for the envelope and running a LPG gas burner to heat the air in the envelope. Ballooning began as a sport with a few enthusiasts in the USA and England and spread to Australia in the 1970s. Today there are over 5,000 balloon pilots in the U.S. alone.

To add some South African detail, this from Terry Adams, South Africa's only balloon builder and top bloke.

Although overseas ballooning events were regularly reported in local newspapers, it was not until 1885 that the first manned flights took place in South Africa.

Three balloons (part of Sir Charles Warren's Bechuanaland Expedition) were flown, on tether, at Mafeking under command of Major H Elsdale. In the 1890's many showmen balloonists performed throughout the country with their hot air bags and parachutes. The first and most successful of these was an American, Professor James William Price, who over a 10 year period made some 100 flights and also managed more than a dozen pilots, both male and female.

The first air fatality occured to one of the Professor's students, Mr Harry Goodall, when he was bashed against rocks during a demonstration at Jagersfontein 0n 11 September 1892. In January 1892 the well known balloonist from England Mr. Stanley Spencer toured the country giving demonstrations and lectures.

The Boer War reintroduced military ballooning with the formation of four balloon units by the Royal Engineers, which operated throughout the country. These tethered hydrogen gas balloons were similar to those used in Mafeking, and provided the army with aerial observation posts for the direction of Artillery fire and the reconnaissance of enemy camps and troop movements.

In the early 1900's circus troupes added to their repertoire the attraction of ballooning, again of the showman variety of ascending by balloon and descending by parachute. In 1911 the Aeronautical Society of South Africa was formed under Major Rogers. They invited the famous Swiss balloonist Captain Eduard Spelterini to this country. He made three ascents over Johannesburg in July of that year, and between flights gave spectacular slide shows from his large collection of aerial views of the Alps, the Pyramids and other interesting places he had flown over.

Mr. Sydney Spencer, one of the many sons of the famous London balloon firm of Stanley Spencer & Sons Ltd, was also in the South Africa at this time. He was involved with the Durban Beach balloon in 1911, which unfortunately had a short life, as did its replacement the following year.

The next important milestone was a flight over Johannesburg by the Dutch balloonists Nini and Jan Boesman in 1958. They returned again in 1966 for an extended tour with two gas balloons.

The first modern hot air balloon arrived in 1969, owned by American Ted Peterson. The first local Aeronaut, Mr. McClennon, flew in 1970 followed by Dr. Frank Schikkinger in 1972. Dr. Schikkinger founded the Balloon section of the Aero Club of South Africa that same year. 1976 saw the first International Balloon Race take place from Johannesbug to Durban with 16 international pilots in the Southern Sun meet. After that, ballooning gained a firm footing with the formation of the Pioneer Balloon Club by Jeanette and Mike van Ginkel and friends, and in 1977 the first South African manufactured balloon a Flamboyant AX7 ZS-HOT "Angel Baby" took to the skies.

Here is Terry ballooning whilst serving as a Royal Naval pilot on HMS Ark Royal. This flight took place on the 29th of November 1970. If your into ballooning then the balloon is of course the very famous Bristol Belle, the first balloon built by Don Cameron.