An Alternative View to Small Balloons

By Bob LeDoux

As editor of The Balloon Builder's Journal, I hear from a growing number of pilots who are looking for better way to fly. I would like to use this opportunity to play devil's advocate and present a different look at small balloons, a composite of ideas, as I hear them from some of my readers:

As type certified balloons escalate in their weight and their cost, a growing number of sport and recreation pilots are looking to smaller systems in an effort to reduce the costs and effort involved in flying. While a number of balloon manufacturers have attempted to address these concerns, some pilots feel that the factories have not moved far enough in terms of weight reduction. A number of small system designers, in particular Brian Boland, have demonstrated there exists a market for extremely light balloons.

These current lightweight systems are, for the most part, amateur-built and constructed around two simple elements. The basket consists of a light framework, of non-traditional materials, sometimes covered with fabric, and sometimes carrying the fuel tanks on the basket exterior. Envelopes are often constructed of lightweight parachute-type fabrics. The burners and tanks are typically taken from an older generation of balloons. While this decision is often made due to the lower cost of used equipment these components are often lighter in weight than the newer equipment..

Using these non-traditional materials, a complete two place balloon can be constructed which fits in the back of a very small van or the car trunk. As Mr. Boland is quick to point out, these systems can even be carried as airline luggage. The weight of the components make it possible for two or three people to set up and fly one of these small aircraft. This allows 'spur of the moment' decisions to fly without the traditional ritual of lining up ground crews. Under ideal conditions, even an inflator fan is optional.

These simple and functional systems are in marked contrast to today's manufactured balloons. The recent factory trends towards custom designed tanks and burner hardware, with their elegance and attention to ergonomic details are being bought with increasing weight and increasing costs. Of course, this extra weight and extra cost is being passed on to the pilot.

For a growing number of pilots, the amount of effort and crew coordination required to operate a balloon is becoming an impediment to flying. Many of our pilots are getting older. The increasing weight of manufactured balloons is in contrast with their decreasing physical strength and desire to work at ballooning. These factors may be less detrimental to the ride business operator, but they are of increasing concern to the sport and pleasure pilot. How many airworthy balloons are there slowly disintegrating in garages and shops because their owners have tired of the increasing effort required to fly?

Without the constraints placed by a Standard Type Certificate, builders are free to create features which would be difficult to incorporate into factory products. For example a lightweight basket can be designed with the 'crumple zone concept' found in race cars. With this basket would be the expectation that in a very windy landing, parts would progressively fail in the process of bringing its occupants safely to a stop. Once the landing is accomplished, the pilot would replace these disposable parts returning the basket to its original configuration. Such a design concept would be inappropriate in a commercial ride balloon. It also appears difficult to implement in a factory balloon, given the FAA regulated limits on owner maintenance and repair. This example is just one of many reasons why current manufacturers may be limited in their ability to respond to the demand for very light balloon systems.

Lightweight systems are admittedly controversial. Many questions remain which can only be answered as more pilots fly more hours. Several pilots have reported an envelope life of 250 hours using parachute-type fabrics. Without standardized testing, as required in factory balloons, these reports cannot be verified. Pilots have reported little difficulty in making windy landings in fabric covered lightweight baskets. But without more experience, we cannot draw conclusions about their safety as compared to classic rattan baskets.