October 28, 2010 — Seventy-five hot air balloons are currently on standby to fly across the English Channel to France, in hopes of soaring into the record books while raising funds for four United Kingdom charities.
As soon as the Met Office gives the all-clear for take-off from Lydden Hill Race Circuit in Kent, balloons of all shapes and colors will soar above the English Channel, marking the largest ever group of balloons to attempt the crossing.
However, if weather forecasts are correct, the balloons won’t take off until Monday at the earliest. Briefing will take place at dawn on the day of the flight with a mid-morning launch.
Leading the flight will be the brand new, Palletways special shape, fire breathing dragon balloon. The balloon is over 100 feet high and can carry three passengers. The dragon is a record breaker itself, as not only is it the largest hot air balloon of its kind, it is also the only one in the UK with a glass bottom ‘basket’.
In addition, Lindstrand Hot Air Balloons will be flying four of the balloons, one that will be carrying a panoramic basket specifically designed for wheelchair access. Flying in the balloon, with Pilot Steve Kinsey, will be wheelchair user Andrew Jeffrey, a BBC online producer who has flown in balloons several times since his 1979 accident, when, while working off-shore oil drilling in Angola, West Africa, he fell 40 feet and snapped his back at waist level.
The event is not only set to enter the record books but will also raise money and awareness for the Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund, the Halow Project, Marie Curie and the Royal National Lifeboat Institute.
Event organizer Ian Sharpe said: “We have got balloons from all over the country and some from abroad taking part. This year is the 50th anniversary of the first modern hot air balloon flight and I can’t think of a better way to celebrate it.”
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