Legendary Balloon Rides by:Anita Lyon

The father of hot air ballooning was the brilliant French chemistry and physics teacher

, Jean-Franois Piltre de Rozier, who launched the first airborne success on September 19th, 1783. The balloon itself was named 'Aerostat Reveillon' and its pilot was a sheep, carrying a duck and a rooster as its passengers. The grand escapade managed to remain aloft for 15 minutes before giving in to gravity with a thud.

Since that time the altitude record for somewhat more modern hot air balloon flights has reached 102 000 feet, this feat accomplished in 1960 by a Captain Joe Kittinger who proceeded to parachute out of the heaven headed balloon. On a side note, the Captain won the dual honour of breaking the parachute jump record as well breaking the sound barrier with his own body!

The year 1987 produced a hallmark moment in the industry as magnate Sir Richard Branson and partner Per Lindstrand pioneered the crossing of the Atlantic Ocean in a hot air balloon flight. Covering a distance of 2 900 miles they also managed a record breaking time of 33 hours. They teamed up again in 1991 to become the first to cross the Pacific as well. They covered 6,700 miles in 47 hours from Japan to Canada, breaking the world distance record and travelling at speeds of up to 245 miles per hour.

Another major event in ballooning would be the achievement of Mr Steve Fossett in 2002 who is the first and only man to travel around the world in a solo flight. With six previous attempts to his name, his successful landing can be considered a serious achievement and one that hasn't been outdone to this day. The conditions aboard the gondola were certainly not luxurious as it wasn't any bigger than a standard sized closet and he managed an average of only four hours sleep per day. This certainly gets one over on the Jules Verne's character Phileas Fogg, who covered most of the distance aboard a comfortable steamer.

Modern balloon safaris are certainly a far cry in terms of comfort, since these days most people travel the skies in this style for the sheer joy of it, but hot air ballooning has a long history of excitement and every journey is a new saga.

About the author

Anita Lyon is a Professional freelance SEO Copywriter and writes on various topics. If you are looking to experience a once in a lifetime opportunity then a hot air balloon safari is just for you. Visit the Sunfun Africa Safari website now for amazing hot air balloon packages.

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