----- Original Message -----
From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: Re: PESO: Chicago Three Flat
No. I've never been in a hot air balloon. But I've seen them on TV:-).
Seriously, it seems like something that would be fairly predictable, since
the volume of the balloon is a given, the ambient temperature is known
and -- I would guess -- the heater is calibrated to some degree of
accuracy.
Generally, the ambient temperature is rising during the flight, though with
an evening flight, it can drop, the volume of the balloon varies with
barometric pressure and humidity, and the burner takes raw liquid propane
and burns it as fast as it can, which will vary based on tank temperature
and volume left in the tank.
Note the weight of the airgraft varies significantly during the flight. The
fuel is a significant part of the weight load.
This variance is fairly predictable.
What's below you will make a difference as well. If you are flying over a
treed or grassed area, the aircraft will fly differently than if you are
flying over a field of wheat or a pond because of the thermals produced.
My instructor and his student had a really rough forced landing when they
strayed over a gravel pit and the thermals killed their lift. They
overtemped the balloon 50ยบ, and still hit the ground.
The danger of flying low, you do't know whats over the next rise, they
managed to get about 200 feet AGL, then the thermals took them down.
To get away from this, you really need to be a thousand or more feet in the
air, more if making big ground transitions, which isn't as much fun as
flying under 10 feet AGL.
Every time you fly, the weight in the aircraft is different, so the aircraft
handles differently every flight.
It's not difficult, but it is piloting moment by moment, and one needs a lot
of feel for the aircraft.
The bigger aircrafts that ride companies generally use are easier to fly, I
was training on a Balloonworks AX-7B over a 3.9 basket. It's a pretty small
aircraft by balloon standards.
If you ever get the chance to go on a flight, grab a long lens and a
seriously wide angle lens take off.
William Robb
