Up In Flight

One

The rapture of flight has held the imaginations of humans for more than a century. From Hollywood classics like The Wizard of Oz to popular songs like 99 Hot Air Balloons, the ability to fly has soared us to new heights. Common knowledge would have us believe the Wright Brothers were “The First in Flight." However, history has a different story to tell. There was at least one other aeronautical scene before the Wrights.

First, the claim itself must be discussed: "First in Flight." How do we define flight? What criteria did they use then, and what criteria do we use know to determine what "flight" means? Dictionary.cambridge.org describes “flight” with three definitions: 1. an aircraft that is making a particular trip; 2. an occasion when something flies or moves through the air; and 3. a trip in an aircraft. In addition, I looked up the same word in the Pocket Oxford Dictionary of Current English which defines “flight” as an act or mode of flying through air (304). Here we already see the trouble with the word “flight,” namely that the definition does not provide a type of aircraft. Also, “flight,” my also represent the mode, and not the act itself. 

Based on this definition, it would appear that Brazilian Alberto Santo-Dumont would be the first in flight with his lighter-than-air aircraft, and other dirigibles, who History.com reports as the one real contender with any legitimate claim to the title. 

Santos-Dumont, who, lived in Paris in the 1890s, and with his family’s coffee planting fortune, began investing in and experimenting with hot air balloons and motor-powered dirigibles. 

The Wright Brothers began their experiments in secret in December of 1903. Granted Santos-Dumont did not begin experimenting with heavier-than-air aircraft after the Wright Brothers, it cannot be ignored that Santos-Dumont was first in flight based on the aforementioned definition (History.com). 

There is more evidence which would suggest that the Wright Brothers do not deserve the title of “First in Flight.” Though there may be a biased attached to this evidence, it cannot be ignored. Brazilian physicist, Henrique Lins de Barros points out that the Wright Brothers did not follow the correct criteria of the time. For example, their flight was assisted by rail, whereas Santos-Dumont’s flight was not mechanically assisted (History.com). 

I, too, have always been mystified by flight. I was born and raised in San Diego, California. My closest relatives were my grandparents on my mother’s side, and they lived in New Hampshire, so every summer since I was six years old, I would fly alone from San Diego, CA to Boston, MA, where my grandparents would pick me up at Logan airport. 

I remember one summer when I was about twelve years old, and my grandfather was driving on I95 North to New Hampshire—I was sitting in the middle between him and my grandmother—when all of a sudden, an innumerable amount of round hot air balloons swarmed the front windshield of the blue Buick as if they were lady bugs born unto earth for the first time. I was amazed. I was enthralled, and ever since that day, I have always wanted to fly in a hot air balloon. 

Fast forward to 2008, my father had recently died, and I inherited some money. I was grieving, living in New York City, and working for a start-up company. I wanted adventure. I remembered my childhood experience driving to New Hampshire from Logan Airport and seeing the mounting hot air balloons swarm the front windshield of the car. I booked a flight and a train ticket that night. 

Two

A relic of man’s first successful flight, the hot air balloon stops onlookers in their tracks. It is the best way to experience a bird’s-eye view of the world and achieve a true sense of freedom. Formally known as a lighter-than-air craft, pilots fly these vibrant vehicles twice a day, at sunrise and just before sunset. Mornings and early evenings are best, as the wind is at its calmest. An entire hot air ballooning experience involves the set-up, the flight itself, and the subsequent break-down of the balloon system.

The balloon system consists of the envelope (commonly know as the balloon), the burners, which supply the heat, and the gondola (the basket).

When booking a flight, the pilot will call you the day before to discuss the weather conditions and to confirm the trip. You’ll meet the pilot and the chase crew, a team of 1-3 people who follow the balloon, at a designated location and prepare for take off.

Balloon assembly begins quickly. Unpack the envelope from its storage bag, and connect it to the basket by toggle and cable. Next, you will help inflate the envelope with cold air using two industrial fans—see if you can help out by holding the cables apart at the skirt (balloon bottom)!

Once the balloon is filled with cold air, the pilot begins to heat the air inside the envelope with the burners. This is a very intense part of the process; to be so close and involved is loud, hot and thrilling!

When you take your hot air balloon ride, observe your surroundings as the wind lifts you higher. You may encounter a sense of disbelief that it actually works. Take a deep breath, exhale, and feel free and relaxed. Hot air balloons are still the safest method of flight. Ask your pilot questions and enjoy the view!

During the flight, the pilot is in constant contact with the chase vehicle via walkies-talkie. Fifteen minutes before landing, the pilot scopes out an area where they think the balloon will land, and contacts the chase vehicle. At this point, listen to your pilot attentively.

Landings, sometimes called rip landings, require great skill, as pilots do not have the ability to steer hot air balloons, nor do they have wheels. A rip landing may look like a crash landing, but is quite benign; the pilot slowly pulls the vent line, releasing hot air through the parachute valve (balloon top).

The idea is to control the up and downward motion, or vertical velocity of the balloon with different temperatures of heat. The initial touchdown slows the balloon, and gives the basket a few firm bounces before dragging to a complete stop. Sometimes, if the chase crew arrives to the landing spot on time, the pilot will throw down the ‘drop line,’ and you can get pulled down.

Safely landed, you can help deflate the balloon by taking the envelope into your arms and moving slowly backwards, pushing the air out. Because the pilot doesn’t exactly know where the landing will occur, which most of the time is on private property, the pilot, according to Todd J. Monahan owner and pilot of SunKiss Ballooning, traditionally brings a bottle of Champagne to celebrate the flight and thank the landowner for allowing the pilot to land on their property—better a drunk landowner, than an angry one.

Take a ride and rise above in a hot air balloon! A great way to fly, a great way to be!