Category Archives: dies

David Levin (June 10, 1948 – May 13, 2017)

David Levin (1948 - 2017)David is the only balloon pilot to have won both the Hot Air and Gas Balloon World Championships and he completed the “triple crown” of ballooning by winning the prestigious Coupe Aeronautique Gordon Bennett in 1992. He has also won the U.S. National Championships in both Gas and Hot Air. Other wins include the 1988 Trans-Australia Balloon Challenge, 1990 Canadian Open National Championship, 1994 Alpine Balloon Trophy in Austria and the 1996 America’s Challenge Gas Balloon Race in Albuquerque. His last win was the 2000 America’s Challenge with a flight of 1,998 miles, flying from Albuquerque to Gorham, Maine in 66 hours. David retired from balloon competition after the World Air Games in Seville, Spain in 2001.

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Happy birthday James Gordon Bennett Jr.

Portrait of James Gordon Bennett, Jr.

Portrait of James Gordon Bennett, Jr.

James Gordon Bennett Jr. (May 10, 1841 – May 14, 1918) was publisher of the New York Herald, founded by his father, James Gordon Bennett Sr., who emigrated from Scotland. He was generally known as Gordon Bennett to distinguish him from his father. Among his many sports-related accomplishments he organized both the first polo match and the first tennis match in the United States, and he personally won the first trans-oceanic yacht race. He sponsored explorers including Henry Morton Stanley’s trip to Africa to find David Livingstone, and the ill-fated USS Jeannette attempt on the North Pole. Continue reading

Antal Notheisz passed away

Notheisz Antal passed away

Antal Notheisz

It is with great regret that we must inform you that Antal Notheisz, well known as the founder of the Notheisz Balloon Ltd, passed away on 9th July 2015.

He and his company produced hundreds of hot air balloons from 1980. These balloons flew many countries in Europe and some of them was the first hot air balloon in few countries.

We present our heartfelt condolences and sympathies to his grief-stricken Family and to his friends.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Balloon crashes near Luxor killing 19 tourists

British, French and Japanese nationals are reported to be among 19 tourists killed in a hot air balloon crash near the southern Egyptian city of Luxor.

The site in Luxor, about 40 minutes before the crash (Pic: @chrismichel)

The site in Luxor, about 40 minutes before the crash (Pic: @chrismichel)

The balloon was flying at 1,000 ft (300m) when it caught fire and exploded, plunging onto fields west of Luxor, officials said.

Two people, including the balloon’s pilot, reportedly survived the crash.

Luxor lies on the banks of the River Nile and is home to some of Egypt’s most famous pharaonic-era ruins.

“There were 20 passengers aboard. An explosion happened and 19 passengers died. One tourist and the pilot survived,” Ahmed Aboud, a representative of balloon firms in Luxor, told Reuters news agency.

The British foreign office told the BBC it was making urgent inquiries with its colleagues in Egypt to confirm reports of British casualties.

The crash occurred in Luxor, Egypt

The crash occurred in Luxor, Egypt

NBC News quoted a Luxor health official as saying that the victims include nine from Hong Kong, four from Japan, two from the United Kingdom and two from France, with two yet to be identified.

Cherry Tohamy, an Egyptian living in Kuwait who was on holiday in Luxor, told the BBC her balloon was landing when she heard an explosion and saw flames from a balloon above.

“Our pilot told us that the balloon had hit a high pressure electrical cable and a cylinder on board exploded,” she said. “People were jumping out of the balloon from about the height of a seven-storey building.”

Police and rescuers inspect the wreckage of the hot air balloon. Photograph: Reuters

Police and rescuers inspect the wreckage of the hot air balloon. Photograph: Reuters

Tourism official Ahmed Aboud said the balloon was at around 300 metres (1,000 feet) above Luxor when the blast happened.

The pilot survived by jumping from the basket when it was 10-15 metres from the ground, said Aboud, head of an association representing Luxor balloon operators. The pilot was being treated for burns.

Hot air ballooning is a popular way for tourists to see Luxor’s famous sites, such as Karnak temple and the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings.

Luxor, like many other parts of Egypt, has seen a sharp downturn in visitor numbers since the uprising in early 2011 that forced long-time President Hosni Mubarak to step down.

This video shows the moment a hot air balloon crashes near Luxor,

(BBC, Sky.com, The Guardian)

Pilot dies as Goodyear zeppelin crashes in Germany ! photos

Goodyear-branded airshipA Goodyear-branded A60 airship burned and crashed in Germany on Sunday evening with one death, the ship’s pilot. The three passengers, all journalists, survived the crash. It appears the blimp caught fire following one or more prop strikes during landing at the Reichelsheim airport, south of Frankfurt, after a local flight.

The pilot was Australian Mike Nerandzic [photo]; it appears he may have saved his passengers at the risk of his own life.

Goodyear blimb on fire in Germany

Pilot dies as Goodyea zeppelin crashes in Germany

The accident happened at the Reichelsheim aerodrome, near Friedberg in central Germany as the aircraft was coming in to land.

Goodyear blimp crash

Two metres from the ground the pilot told his three passengers, all journalists, to jump to the ground while he tried to land safely, said a report on the Bild website, one of whose photographers had been on board.

zeppelin_crashOnce the three journalists evacuated the zeppelin, it climbed back up to 40 metres but then caught fire for reasons not yet clear, said police.

Witnesses reported hearing a loud noise from the engine and smelling petrol fumes.

The zeppelin had been making a promotional flight to mark a local festival.

The journalists who escaped were the photographer from Germany’s Bild magazine and two from RTL television.

 

Pilot dies as Goodyear blimp crashes in Germany

(text: Herald Sun, AAP, airships.net; photos: bild.de)