Early Hot Air Ballooning in Australia
now includes
Grahame Wilson's Writing ..> 
The
Montgolfier brothers in 1783 are believed to be the first people to
fly. It was by hot air balloon. The first balloon flight in Australia
was around 1858, by Joseph Dean in Sydney.
This website originally was intended to be a history, not of that period but beginning around 1962, with the first hot-air flight after a break of over forty years, and the formation of the Aerostat Society of Australia. There are over 150 pictures. It has gradually grown to cover other aviation areas, as well as my writing.
Terry
had no helmet, and had to drop his parachute in order to get enough
lift. Archimedes, with its tiny burner, struggled to maintain height. it initially dropped into a gully followed by the large crowd of
spectators.After 15 mins, Terry reached 2,000ft, and had travelled 3 miles.
.... In 1962, a group of Sydney University students began experimenting with hot air balloons.They formed the Aerostat Society of Australia, under the leadership of Terry McCormack.
At the University, they began by building a small test balloon, then a larger "Archimedes", with just enough volume to lift one person.
40 pictures of interest to the Balloon or Airship Enthusiast.
The British R100 and R101 were built in the massive hangers at RAF Cardington, near Bedford in 1929.
The author visited Cardington in 1971, to view the launching ceremony of Goodyears "Europa". Returning again in 2001, a 2nd visit revealed a changed Cardington, where the revolutionary "SkyCat" was in development.
The crash of Teijin was demoralising to the foundation members, most of them left so the Aerostat Society was virtually a new society. We used Archimedes to generate
funds to build a larger film balloon. I was science
teaching at Naremburn Boys High in Sydney. School holidays were coming
up, and the headmaster allowed us to use the assembly hall as a balloon
factory. The Science lab was converted
to a planning and cutting room. The remaining members, along with four of my students helped out. The new balloons' size was dictated simply by the amount of film we had inherited.
Want
to meet up with commercial tour operators in your area, and have a fun
fly in a balloon ?
Would you like to meet up with balloonists in other States of Australia? You could learn how to fly a balloon. Get a balloon pilots licence. Start by being part of a ground crew. Like to experience a balloon flight in NZ, Holland, UK, Turkey or other countries?
As
president of the Aerostat Society, I had been approached by Fauna
Productions, the makers of "Skippy the Bush Kangaroo." They
wanted to make a TV episode involving a hot air balloon. Ken
Bath and I made a parachute jump for the film.
In the script it was out of the balloon but actually .......
How Rockets
Fly- The German V2, Apollo Moon Project, Russian Soyuz, Space Shuttle.
History and theory of winged aircraft, propellors, engines, helicopters.
History & theory of Balloons and Airships.
Around 1967, parachuting introduced me to ballooning and the Aerostat Society.
After the President, Terry McCormack resigned, I ran the club for about a year.
A hang gliding accident left me in a wheelchair since 1981. Now retired, it gives me time for Story Writing & Watercolours.
Teijin
I was 60ft in diameter, stood 75ft high, and had a volume of 120,000cf
.At the time, it was the largest hot air balloon in the world. On the 12th of Oct 1965 , Teijin I had its first test flight at St. Paul's Oval.
Several ascents were made, carrying up to six people.
A drunken bystander heard somebody call out "Pull us down". And then.....
After
a free-fall of about 1,000ft, I opened the parachute. Checking the
canopy, I spotted Teijin above. Teijin
was made from a red and white striped fabric, however, I could see
it turning silver, and realised I was seeing the inside of the envelope as it began to rip and turn itself inside out.Soon I saw Stan, and then, Don jump. The huge balloon passed between them and as it drew level, the remaining air burst out. I heard it roaring past and slam into the ground, which by then, was not far below.
At
that time, 1965 there was no formal balloon training, although a
few of us were trying to initiate a pilots licencing scheme with
the then Department of Civil Aviation. Now CASA. It was illegal to
fly a balloon unless it was tethered no higher than 200 ft.
To fly free, we had to travel 250Kms (150 miles) west from Sydney.
This
is a brief view of sport parachuting around 1965. A typical "rig" for
the time would be an ex-military back pack, possibly from a pilot of
the Korean war. Most jumpers used a 28ft diameter military canopy,
with slots cut in the rear to give some manoeurability. There
were a few commercial sport parachutes arriving at this time such as
the "Para Commander", and the "Crossbow." (shown
above)These were elliptical in shape, which gave a better glide ratio,
and more accurate steering.