Dream come true

My first steps on journey to being a balloon pilot

- Ellie KENDALL [e-mail]

It has been a dream of mine since I first saw a hot air balloon at the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta as a little girl, to learn to fly one. Back in those days I think my family believed it to just be a pipe dream. But I was determined.

To me, balloon pilots are like rock stars and the Balloon Fiesta like Glastonbury - so whenever I'm in a basket with them, flying over the city, I’m usually a little bit star struck.

With the fiesta offering ‘meet and greets’ in the arena, where you can have photos with and speak to balloon teams and pilots, it certainly feels like I’m not the only one. No stranger to flying in a hot air balloon above Bristol these days after years reporting on the fiesta, I was doubtful any experience could top the feeling of calmly floating over iconic landmarks.

That was until some months ago when I was told that I'd be given the opportunity to actually fly a hot air balloon for part of my journey at the official press launch for this year’s event. And here's where that pipe dream I mentioned earlier begins to become a reality.

We launched from College Green last Friday, where I have been a press passenger in the basket of several balloons over the years - and I never take that opportunity for granted. I discovered I was going to once again join the incredible team flying the SM Gauge balloon.

Last year I flew over the city as a passenger under the expert piloting skills of Mandy Thompson, who has beaten the likes of fighter pilots to be named ‘pilot of the year’ and ‘quickest to inflate’ during the 2023 fiesta’s inflation race. She is also an instructor, qualifying mere weeks before my first flight with her in 2024.