India Balloonist Sets Highest Flight Mark

ap on Yahoo ^ | 11/26/05 | RAMOLA TALWAR BADAM - ap

[NormsRevenge]

Indian millionaire Vijaypat Singhania takes off in a hot air balloon in Bombay, India, Saturday, Nov. 26, 2005. Singhania broke the previous world record by hitting 21,000 meters (69,000 feet) a little more than two hours after taking off in his 40-ton (44-U.S. ton) balloon. Seen in the foreground is an Indian flag. (AP Photo/Rajesh Nirgude)

[NormsRevenge]

Indian industrialist Vijaypat Singhania speaks during a news conference in Mumbai November 26, 2005. Business tycoon Singhania with a penchant for adventure created a new hot-air balloon altitude record on Saturday, touching the edge of space in a climb to nearly 70,000 feet (21,336 metres). REUTERS/Punit Paranjpe

[RightWhale]

That is a large balloon.

[NormsRevenge]

almost 70K feet.. wow.

[NormsRevenge]

Indian millionaire Vijaypat Singhania stands in front of the pressurized cabin of a hot air balloon that he plans to fly, in Bombay, India, Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2005. Singhania said Tuesday he was confident of becoming the first person to fly a hot air balloon to the edge of space later this week. Singhania, 67, plans to fly the balloon at a height of 21,000 meters (70,000 feet) from Bombay on Saturday. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi)

[Meadow Muffin]

Think we could get Kerry, Pelosi, Reid and Kennedy to man the next one to see if it can continue to reach higher and higher and never come back?

[Unmarked Package]

Think we could get Kerry, Pelosi, Reid and Kennedy to man the next one to see if it can continue to reach higher and higher and never come back?

They certainly have experience reaching great heights among DemocRATS on nothing but hot air.

[ASOC]

""This goes to show to the world that we are not bullock cart drivers, but we can compete against the best of the world," the balloonist said.

"
Designed in the UK, likely as not most of it was built there as well. So, he is a well heeled (high tech) bullock cart driver?

I'll wait for him to jump at 70K and freefall for 5 min, then it'll be 'wow' time.

[CarrotAndStick]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1528804/posts

[andyk]

"This goes to show to the world that we are not bullock cart drivers, but we can compete against the best of the world," the balloonist said.

Somebody's feeling a little insecure.

[struwwelpeter]

Altitude of the Highest Manned Balloon Flight The Physics Factbook™

Edited by Glenn Elert -- Written by his students An educational, Fair Use website

Bibliographic Entry Result
(w/surrounding text) Standardized Result

Piccard, Don. World Book Encyclopedia. USA: World Book, 1996. "1961, US Navy Officers Victor A. Prather, Jr and Malcolm Ross rose from a zero-pressure balloon at an altitude of 113,739.9 feet." 34,668 m

Crouch, Tom D. The Eagle Aloft: Two Centuries of the Balloon in America. Washington DC: Smithsonian, 1983. "May 4, 1961, M.D. Ross and V.C. Prather rose at the world record of 113,740 feet." 34,668 m

Perhaps it was just an Indian millionaire, bullock cart driver record?

[Recovering Hermit]

Somebody's feeling a little insecure.

Yeah...it's a good bet his old man was probably a bullock cart driver.

[andyk]

it's a good bet his old man was probably a bullock cart driver.

LOL!

[CarrotAndStick]

Highest flight in a manned hot air balloon.

[struwwelpeter]

I see. That makes his achievement so much more dramatic.

So, is there a separate category for aircraft records if they use JP4 as opposed to JP7? Or are they divided up by color of the pilot's flightsuit?

[Unmarked Package]

Piccard, Don. World Book Encyclopedia. USA: World Book, 1996. "1961, US Navy Officers Victor A. Prather, Jr and Malcolm Ross rose from a zero-pressure balloon at an altitude of 113,739.9 feet." 34,668 m

The record setting flight in 1961 was a spectacular achievement, but a gas balloon was used, not a hot air balloon. Prather died at the end of the record-setting flight when they landed at sea. His flight suit filled with water and he drowned.

[CarrotAndStick]

I don't know. I'm not the one handing out the record certificates.

I was thinking they sorted records based on the type of underwear worn by the balloonists- boxers or briefs, but you seem to have a better hint at the answer.

[Milhous]

Thank you for your research to debunk yet another Olds Media feel-good fabrication. The picture of his balloon seems incredibly different from genuine high altitude balloons that launch in a mostly deflated state. Such balloons self inflate while ascending to lower pressures at higher altitudes.

[Milhous]

Highest flight in a manned hot air balloon.

OK. Thanks for clearing up that particular Olds Media nuance. That fine point seemed to get lost within this story's backslapping celebration of the bullock cart driver community.