Up! The Briton flew 25 kilometers on balloons
The Briton flew 25 kilometers over South Africa on 100 balloons inflated with helium.
Tom Morgan from Bristol climbed to a height of almost 2500 meters in a chair tied to balloons. The 28-year-old Briton spent two days inflating balloons for the flight, which he called magical. Morgan's flight was reminiscent of the animated film "Up", where a whole house was lifted into the air with the help of helium balloons.
After several unsuccessful attempts in Botswana, the flight had to be moved to South Africa. "The problem was to find a period of favorable weather conditions and protect the balloons because they were bursting."
Helium was left for one attempt. Morgan and his team moved the base north of Johannesburg. Morgan admitted that it was an "incredibly cool experience" and he felt both fear and joy when he took to the air.
When the air crew reached the inversion layer of the atmosphere, it began to accelerate rapidly. "I had to calm down and start gradually cutting off the balloons."
Morgan, who has lived in Bristol for 15 years, organizes adventure programs. After the flight, he had the idea to conduct balloon races in Africa. "We will have to avoid areas with a lot of thorny bushes," Morgan said.