A new world record was set at an event held in France last week in front of hundreds of thousands of eager spectators.
The record for the most simultaneous hot air balloon flights was broken for the second time in as many events at the Mondial Air Ballons festival, which took place at an airbase located in Chambley-Bussières. A total of 456 hot air balloons simultaneously took flight as part of the record attempt.
The weather for the event was not completely ideal, with the attempt having to be postponed twice during the week because of adverse windy conditions. The attempt eventually got underway last Friday, July 28, where the weather was rather cloudy after it was deemed safe enough to fly.
Among the balloons on show were those taking the shape of a kangaroo, various smiley faces and a champagne bottle. The colourful and amusing designs filled the sky to the relief of event organisers.
It took the organisers approximately 45 minutes to launch all 456 balloons, which took a lot of planning and coordination. The flight got off with only one small glitch, when a balloon being flown by an English pilot collided with power lines. Nobody was hurt in the incident and the balloon only suffered minor damages.
This year’s attempt at the record saw all participants surpass the mark of 433 balloons, which was set two years previously at the same event, which is held biannually. A total of 45 different nationalities were represented in the record attempt, which welcomed pilots of hot air balloons from Bath to the Bahamas.
