Tag Archives: Hot Air Balloon

Not The Best Location To Land Your Hot Air Balloon

Hot Air BalloonTaking to the air in a hot air balloon is a wonderful adventure enjoyed by many enthusiasts around the world. Once airborne and the desired height has been reached a peaceful flight is normally had by all who cannot fail but to enjoy the spectacular scenery.

Of course, finding a suitable landing spot does not always go according to plan especially if the weather changes whilst airborne. However, even if the scheduled landing spot is missed it is usually possible to find somewhere else that is equally as safe to land. For instance, there is normally a farmer’s field to land your hot air balloon in perhaps with the offer of a bottle of whisky or wine as a thank you to the landowner.

Well, you may be interested to read that the landing of a hot air balloon in Florida, USA did not quite go according to plan. Unfortunately, the wind meant that the pilot was unable to land exactly where he had hoped to. Instead, to avoid, power lines, the pilot landed the hot air balloon in a pond resulting in the 16 passengers and the pilot getting rather wet.

Fortunately, the basket landed the right way up in the water but as it drifted towards the bankside the basket turned over. Fortunately, nobody was seriously injured which is perhaps rather lucky as in the pond were a number of alligators but they paid no attention to the hot air balloon or the passengers.Hot Air Balloon

The pilot received a lot of praise for his skill at avoiding the power lines. Apparently, he is an experienced hot air balloon pilot with in excess of 2,000 hours in the sky. Let us hope that his next trip is less traumatic.

If you are in need of airsports insurance why not give us a call at AIB Insurance on 02380 268 351 and speak with a member of our friendly staff who will happily arrange a quotation.

Four World Record Attempts In Wingsuit

Wingsuit Fraser Corsan from the UK is an experienced wingsuit pilot who has made around 1,300 wingsuit jumps. He is attempting to break not one but four world records in respect of this airsport as well as raising a significant sum of money for the armed forces charity known as ssafa.

His first attempt at breaking the world records was scheduled to take place on the 22 May but weather conditions meant that the aircraft he was to jump from could only get to 33,000 feet. Unfortunately, that was less than the current world record.

Another jump was scheduled to take place in Ontario Canada before the end of May but this time he will jump from a hot air balloon from in excess of 40,000 feet. At the time of writing, the weather has not been kind to Mr Corsan so the date of the second attempt is not certain.Hot Air Balloon

The four wingsuit jump records he will hopefully attempt to break are for the highest altitude, the fastest speed, the longest time and the furthest distance.

The current record for the highest altitude is 37,265 feet. He hopes to jump from more than 40,000 feet where the temperature could be as low as between -50 degrees centigrade to -70 degrees centigrade. Aircraft fly at around 36,000 feet. At the moment, the highest speed is 234 mph and Mr Corsan hopes to reach 250 mph. The current Guinness world record for the longest time flown is 9 minutes and 6 seconds and Mr Corsan is going to attempt to stay airborne for 10 minutes. The furthest distance flown so far by someone in a wingsuit is 19.01 miles. He is going to try to travel a distance of 20 miles.

We are sure that our readers who participate in airsports will agree that it would be a remarkable set of achievements if Mr Corsan were to break all four world records in a wingsuit. No doubt you will join us in wishing him the very best and a safe landing.

Here at AIB Insurance, we have been arranging insurance cover for a huge variety of airsports through our extensive panel of insurance companies for many years. So, why not give us a call on 02380 268 351 and speak with a knowledgeable member of our team to discuss your requirements and obtain a competitive quote without any obligation.

Hot Air Ballooning With Falcons

Hot Air Balloon And FalconThose of you involved in flying hot air balloons are well aware of the wonderful experience such a trip offers especially on a warm, clear summer’s day. The views are spectacular as you fly high above the countryside in the UK in peaceful surroundings.

Well, if that is not enough to please some of you interested in taking to the skies in a hot air balloon, how about a trip several thousand feet up using this mode of transport but where the journey also involves seeing a falconry demonstration that actually takes part from the basket of the hot air balloon. Such an experience is offered by a company in the United Arab Emirates.

Hot Air Balloon FalcolnIt is claimed to be the first time that falcons have been used in this way anywhere in the world. The hot air balloon rises to 4,000 feet above the desert from where the falcons have been specially trained to fly from thus providing a wonderful demonstration of these magnificent birds. In addition to witnessing the falcons you also enjoy breakfast in the desert and go on a wildlife safari in an open top Land Rover built in the 1950s. The hot air balloon flight lasts for around an hour. Flights are available between October to the end of May. Possibly something to consider if you are planning a trip to the United Arab Emirates?

Here at AIB Insurance, we have many years experience in helping many of our customers arrange insurance for a variety of air borne modes of transport. So, if you are looking for cover either because you are considering taking to the air for the first time or have an existing policy that is shortly coming up for renewal why not give us a call on 02380 268 351 and speak with a friendly, knowledgeable member of our staff who will happily obtain a competitive quotation for your consideration.

Skydivers Complete World’s Longest Swing

Skydiving

As a child, you probably enjoyed sitting on a swing seat in your back garden or in a playground and trying to get as high up in the air as you could perhaps with the help of one of your parents pushing you. You may well have got to a height of 3 or 4 feet off the ground.

Well, you may be interested to read that four skydivers from the Red Bull Skydiving Team have recently completed the longest swing in the world with the help of a very long rope and a couple of hot air balloons. In fact, the rope was actually 125 metres in length – a little longer than the ones used with garden swings!

The rope was attached to one of the hot air balloons and the skydivers were in the other hot air balloon in which the swing seat was placed having been attached to the other end of the rope. Apparently, the two hot air balloons were taken to a height of 1,800 metres with both remaining at the same height and were also kept a certain distance apart that must have been difficult to achieve.Skydiving

One of the skydivers then sat on the swing seat that was balanced on the edge of the hot air balloon’s basket before releasing themselves into the air no doubt making a rapid freefall descent before the rope went tight and the swinging motion then came into play. The skydiver had a red flare attached to their ankle and during the whole process he reached a speed of in excess of 100km per hour.

However, not content to make a gradual descent sitting on the swing attached to the hot air balloon, the skydiver then vacated the seat mid-air to skydive to safety on the ground doing a few flips on the way down. Congratulations to those skydivers for completing the world’s longest swing.