The hot air balloon was invented in 1783 by Joeseph and Stephen Montgolfier.

They built a hot air

balloon out of paper which Pilatre De Rozier flew over Paris. Modern-day hot air ballooning using a
controlled propane burner and nylon fabric was invented in 1961 by Ed Yost at Raven Industries.

Hot-air balloons are commonly used for recreational purposes. In addition to quiet morning or afternoon
flights drifting cross-country to enjoy the view, many balloonists enjoy competitive sporting events and
attempting to set new records. A balloonist may fly alone in the basket or carry several passengers.

On March 21, 1999, Swiss psychiatrist Bertrand Piccard and English balloon instructor Brian Jones
became the first team to fly around the world by balloon, nonstop and without refueling, setting records
for distance and duration, and winning a million-dollar purse staked by Anheuser-Busch

This is a list of notable balloonists:

Jean-Pierre Blanchard (French) and John Jeffries (American), first flight across the English Channel, 1785.
[1]

Mercedes Corominas (1886–1926), first female Spanish balloonist to make a solo ascent, later famed
exhibitionist in Portugal and Brazil.[2]

Alberto Santos-Dumont (1873–1932), Brazilian and one of the very few people to have contributed
significantly to the development of both lighter-than-air and heavier-than-air aircraft.

Steve Fossett (1944–2007), American, first solo non-stop balloon flight around the Earth.

James Glaisher FRS (1809–1903), English meteorologist, astronomer, and pioneering balloonist, with a
world record-breaking ascent in 1862

David N. Levin (1948–2017), American, only "triple crown pilot"

J. B. Holmes - (1982), American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour. Bronze medal balloonist.

Joseph-Michel and Jacques-Étienne Montgolfier, French, inventors of the Montgolfière-style hot air
balloon

Jean Pierre Alfred Nadal, Siege of Paris 1870 French balloon aeronautist, 1871 lieutenant magasinier
général des aérostiers civils et militaires[3][4]

Letitia Ann Sage (c.1750–1817), first British woman to ascend in a balloon

James Sadler (balloonist) (1753–1828), first English balloonist

Élisabeth Thible, first female balloonist

The history of ballooning, both with hot air and gas, spans many centuries. It includes many firsts,
including the first human flight, first flight across the English Channel, first flight in North America, and
first aircraft related disaster.

The first ever non-stop balloon flight across the globe

In March 1999 Brian Jones and Bertrand Piccard made the first non-stop flight around the world in a
balloon.

Their dangerous journey began in Switzerland and finished over Africa. It took just 20 days.

Pilot Brian Jones recalls the highs and lows of that amazing record-breaking journey.

Witness: The stories of our times told by the people who were there.

The history of ballooning is a fascinating one. It includes Benjamin Franklin, a couple of french paper
makers, and a couple of barnyard animals. After many repeated experiments during more than 20
centuries, the secret of aerial navigation was discovered toward the end of the 18th century in 1782
when Stephen (Jacques-Etienne Montgolfier) and Joseph Montgolfier made their ingenious aerostatic
experiment. Smoke from fire hovered over Parisian rooftops for hours before it ascended into clouds –
this inspiration that led to an invention that changed our world forever!

The first hot air balloon flight tests

The younger brother Stephen realized that if a light paper bag were to be made and filled with smoke or
ash from their fire, then it would naturally rise up towards the sky. In November of 1782, in Avignon, the
Montgolfier brothers built a light paper bag in an oblong shape with approximately 40 cubic feet of
capacity and used it to test their experiment.

First Hot Air Balloon Ride

On the 12th day of September 1783, the day appointed for the first balloon flight exhibition before the
members of the Royal Academy ascended with a load from 400-500lbs. Unfortunately, due to high
winds, there was a violent gust of wind damaging the balloon. A new hot air balloon was ordered to be
built in the same dimensions. The new balloon included a basket of wicker-work and was inflated in the
presence of king Louis XVI and the royal family in Versailles. The French king suggested a sheep, a duck,
and a rooster to be placed in the basket as the first hot air ballooning passengers. With these three living
animal passengers, the balloon was launched into the upper air and reached an altitude of 1500 feet.
The animals landed safely at a distance of 10,000 feet from the place of the ascent. The first official
balloon flight was a success.