Pacific Flyer

A SLICE OF THE ACTION - THE AUTHOR'S INVOLVEMENT

How does one get into the team of a record breaking balloon project in Japan?

For me it all started in Amsterdam. Working in an aircraft design office, I was glancing through 'Flight International' during a break, and there was an ad for an engineer to work on the "Endeavour Round the World Balloon Project".

A phone call to Julian Nott, a visit to West Hampstead, London, and I became the resident (literally) engineer. That was in February, 1985.

The intention was to fly around the world non-stop, starting from Perth, western Australia, and heading east at 38,000 feet with the Southern Hemisphere jetstream across the South Pacific, over the Andes in South America, across the south Atlantic, over South Africa, across the southern Indian Ocean and back to Australia. The machine was to be a pressurized two man capsule suspended below a super- pressure helium balloon. The pilots were to he Julian Nott and Spider Anderson, living in a closed loop oxygen enriched atmosphere, while the superpressure envelope kept them at a constant pressure altitude of 38,000 feet.

My responsibility was to design and build the capsule and associated equipment. An 8 foot diameter shell was in fact completed in "Kevlar" composite for a weight of only 65Kg. Unfortunately the project ran short of funds so has not yet been completed.

During the Endeavour episode the author got to know quite a few members of the ballooning fraternity and heard tell of Per Lindstrand and his far fetched ideas — that proved not to be so far fetched after all.

Meanwhile having had a couple of "special shapes'' made at Per's Thunder & Colt balloon factory to publicize his airline, Richard Branson had got bitten by the ballooning bug. Richard and Per got their heads together and in 1986 announced an attempt to cross the Atlantic. The "Virgin Atlantic Flyer", the largest hot air balloon ever, was to be built with Richard's funding, Per's know how, and Thunder & Colt's facilities, and the two men were to pilot their own prodigy.

I was introduced to Per by balloonist extraordinaire, Robin Batchelor, and in February, 1987 started on the Atlantic capsule design.

Stratoquest, the successful altitutde record holder, followed in 1988 and the Pacific Flyer from 1989 to 1991.

The story of the Pacific Flyer follows, including its Atlantic and Stratoquest heritage.

The author manning the Conrol Centre with Chikako and Yuko at the Miyakonojo launch site