HOT AIR
BALLOONS
How cool would it be to float over your house or town in a hot air
balloon?
Official Kids Mag went to the Arkansas Hot Air Balloon
Championship so we could learn something and not just talk hot air.
The balloon is actually called an envelope, and is made up of panels
or gores of non-porous fabric. At the top is a parachute valve that is
used to lower the balloon when opened.
The basket is called a gondola, and typically made of wicker. The main
reason for wicker is the ability to absorb shocks or landings better than
hard surfaces such as wood or metal. Also wicker is lightweight and that
is an important feature when using air to propel you.
Attached to the gondola or basket is propane fuel burners that heat
the air and fill the balloon. Hotter air is lighter than the air around it
and causes buoyancy. This buoyancy is what makes the balloon lift.
Here are some awesome questions about Hot Air Balloons.
When was the first hot air balloon invented?
• The first unmanned hot air balloons were used by China as
lanterns during the Three Kingdoms era, (220-280 AD) for military
signaling.
• In 1709, a Portuguese Jesuit priest Bartolomeu de Gusmão, was
able to raise himself with the aerial apparatus called Passarola.
• The first flight with living creatures (a sheep, a duck and a rooster)
was on September 19, 1783. The Aérostat Réveillon, created by
brothers Joseph-Michael and Jacques-Etienne Montgolfier took to the
air in Versailles in front of King Louis XVI of France and Queen Marie
Antoinette. The flight lasted about 8 minutes, covered two miles and
reached an altitude of 1,500 feet.
What is the pilot of a hot air balloon called?
The pilot is an aeronaut, or a balloon pilot.
How long does it take to become a hot air balloon pilot?
Have at least 35 hours as a pilot, including 20 hours in balloons,
which must include the following: 10 flights in balloons; 10 hours of
flight training that includes at least 10 flights with an instructor on the
Commercial Pilot areas of operation; two flights as pilot in command.
Do you need a license for a hot air balloon?
To pilot a balloon you must have a pilot's license, or
airman's certificate, just as you would for an airplane or any
other aircraft. ... The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
issues balloon pilot licenses and training is for the Lighter-than-Air
category, Hot Air Balloon with Airborne Heater rating.
44 • Off icialKidsMag.com • OC TOBER 2019
