Trappe Flights:


	Chairway To Heaven: June 7th, 2008 Gas cluster flown above a standard office chair. Flight reached altitudes approaching 15,000 feet, lasted 4 hours, and ranged over about 50 miles of North Carolina. Additional Accounts: News & Observer; N&O Gallery; Accenture; XLTA.org Triangle Business Journal; BALLOONING Magazine; New York Times (excerpt)
	Blueberry Cluster: August 31st, 2008 10 hour flight in the skies over Indiana! 38 blue-and-white balloons formed the 'Blueberry Cluster' which ranged over 87 miles and achieved a peak altitude of 17,930 feet. [ ! ] Additional Accounts: The South Bend Tribune; The Pilot News;
	Cloudhopper: N2011J - Recurring 34,000 cu/ft (hot-air): Cameron M-34 Cloudhopper N2011J, named 'Juliet.' (That story had a happy ending, didn't it?) This beautiful one-man hot air balloon is flown in North Carolina, and around the country, regularly.
	Wörner Gas Balloon: D-OBYN - August 24th, 2008 35,000 cu/ft (Hydrogen): We traveled to Germany to launch this hydrogen balloon out of the Gladbeck balloon port-- also known as "Willie Eimer's Balloon Port" in deference to the tremendous work Willie devoted to creating this wonderful 'Gasballon Startzplätz.' The flight launched in the dead of night and flew over the beautiful lights of the industrial city Dortmund. Then we went up above the clouds for sunrise before landing nearly six hours after launch in the German countryside, near the village of Wolfhagen. Dream flight with fairy tale landing piloted with world champions Bob Berben (Gordon Bennett Champion, 2005) and Troy Bradley (55 world records.)
	Bradley Gas Balloon: N3027Z - May 14th, 2008 14,000 cu/ft (Helium): This small helium balloon has been flown to several world records by world-class balloonist Troy Bradley. When we flew together in this balloon, in May of 2008, we launched the first standard gas balloon to take-off in the Carolinas in over 20 years. This 6.5 hour flight included two cluster balloon cells, to test them at altitude in preparation for the Chairway to Heaven flight. Additional Accounts:Gas Division Newsletter;
	America's Challenge Gas Balloon Race: October 6th to October 9th, 2008 Set race record for longest flight: 68 hours, 46 minutes non-stop. Flew over six U.S. states, landing 790 miles from the high New Mexico desert launch site. Flight across Jemez Mountians, Palo Duro canyon, Dead Man mesa, and the Missouri River results in being awarded 2nd place in overall competition. (35,000 cu/ft, Helium ) Additional Accounts:GasBalloon.be;
	United States Air Force High Altitude Chamber: August 7th, 2008 High altitude training flight to 25,000 feet in chamber at Andrew's Air Force Base. Pre-breathe 100% pure oxygen to purge nitrogen from the blood before launching into thin air. This amazing flight program, which is part of the FAA's Civil Aerospace Medical Institute, allowed me to go very high, become very hypoxic, and quite loopy-- so that I know what to look for should this happen when flying under my balloon system.

Historic Flights:

Dr. Jean Piccard flew the first gas cluster balloon system on July 18th, 1937. Dr. Piccard was a Professor of Aerospace Engineering at the University of Minnesota and an eminent balloonist. Clearly a brilliant man, Dr. Piccard flew a two-tier hydrogen system of about 95 cells. Interestingly, Dr. Piccard rigged a TNT charge between the two tiers of hydrogen filled balloons. When approaching landing, Dr. Piccard triggered the TNT charge, which freed the top tier of balloons and caused the system to land quite readily. Unfortunately, burning embers from the TNT charge drifted down to the bottom tier of balloons, causing the hydrogen to ignite. The headline in the New York Times the next day read: "DR. PICCARD DOWN ON IOWA TREE-TOP; BALLOON CAR BURNS." Dr. Jean Piccard escaped without injury. [ NYT1, NYT2, NYT3 ]

Twenty years later, Dr. Jean Piccard’s son, Don Piccard, took a a cluster system on a two-hour ride to over 4,000 feet. Don is an accomplished balloonist and one of the participants in much of early ballooning history. Don’s cluster system flew, landed safely, and garnered the attention of Life Magazine. The October 7th, 1957 edition features a multi-page story on Don’s flight.

Then, there is Larry Walters. Ah, the ill-prepared aviation dreamer, Lawnchair Larry. Larry did two things: launched the modern sport of cluster ballooning, and set it back 10 years. He managed to accomplish these two feats simultaneously. In 1982, while floating tethered to the surface in a Lawnchair attached to multiple large helium balloons, Larry’s craft accidentally broke free of his tether lines and Larry shot to approximately 16,000 feet, flew 45 minutes in the congested San Diego airspace, landed in power lines, and walked away unharmed. When asked why he did it, Larry is quoted as having said “A man can’t just stay at home.”