The Balloon Works, Inc.
810 Salisbury Road
Statesville, NC 28677
(704) 878-9501
FAX (704) 878-9505

President: Elenor Conn

Apples and Oranges
Choosing the right hot air balloon system is a difficult task. Wading through the rhetoric and advertising claims to uncover the information you need can be a daunting task. The two pages allocated to each manufacturer in this Buyers’ Guide give the impression that all manufacturers and all the equipment is pretty much the same. Nothing could be farther from the truth.

Some balloons were created on kitchen tables and two car garages. Some are outright copies of earlier designs. Some baskets are merely an outgrowth of ancient gas balloon technology. Some envelopes are truly just a loose bag of fabric that barely holds air

Only one balloon system was designed from the ground up to be a logical, cohesive and integrated system: The Balloon Works FireFly. Designed in 1972 and FAA certified in 1974, the FireFly system was conceived as a unified whole from the beginning. After 24 years in the manufacturing business and with over 4200 FireFly owners flying all around the world, The Balloon Works still has a truly unique and exciting story to tell.

First in Flight
No other balloon manufacturer has contributed more to the development of safety features currently being used by virtually all manufacturers. The safety of the parachute valve designed at The Balloon Works and copied world wide allowed the sport of ballooning to develop. The essential and truly redundant back up burner system called Fire 2 was developed by The Balloon Works and became an industry standard in the 1970’s. Kevlar suspension cables which have saved the lives of hundreds of pilots and passengers were introduced to the ballooning community on FireFly systems in 1986. Other equipment developed at The Balloon Works and available on FireFly systems includes nonconductive fuel lines, DCM tank coating, nonconductive suspension ropes, nonconductive basket frames, the clear upward viewing window, composite structure divided compartment baskets, the only no-wires to-the-basket electronic temperature gauge and Halon fire suppression system. Who else can match this list of security, innovation and creativity?

Beyond a Safe Ride
Safety, however, is not the whole story. A balloon must be beautiful. It must be durable and long-lasting. It should be lightweight and easy to assemble. It should climb quickly and have enough power to stop a rapid descent. The FireFly system is all of this and more. Constructed of the very best materials - wicker, rattan, leather, hardwood - FireFly baskets manufactured in the 70’s are still flying today. The triangular design is unique in the world. With the tanks tucked neatly and safely away, there is more room for passengers. Triangles are inherently stable on landing and do not doghouse like all rectangular baskets. The Mirage burner is a wonder of simplicity and is the quietest, most powerful burner available. Not only that, every triangular FireFly carriage comes complete with an instrument dashboard and handy glove box!

Lasts Longer - Flies Great
The FireFly envelope is constructed out of our exclusive polyester fabric and comes with the only 1000 hour / 5 year warranty in the business. FlexNet construction with its strong web of tapes and sliding load cords make it the safest envelope available. Since the entire system is modular, repairs are inexpensive and easy to do. Polyester fabric is inherently resistant to degradation from exposure to acid moisture and ultraviolet light. Polyester will out last any nylon balloon, no matter how heavy or what it is called. Because the redline of polyester is 300 F, a full 50 degrees higher than any other balloon, you will be able to fly more passengers, more often, in more conditions. As if that weren’t enough, the usable payload in every FireFly system is the highest of any system. (see chart on opposite page)

The Bottom Line
If you want a safe, beautiful, fun-to-fly balloon, made by a company with a long tradition of innovation and concern for ballooning, buy a FireFly. A word of caution, make sure that you love the color pattern because you will be seeing it for a very long long time.

Keep it Simple
After 24 years of building balloons, we’ve made comparing, buying and owning a FireFly balloon as simple as possible. Eighteen standard colors plus metallics, eight envelope patterns and eight different size triangular carriages with hundreds of option combinations to fit every sport, commercial, ride, or fun flyer’s needs. The only limitation is your imagination. Financing is always available. Give one of our worldwide network of dealers a call or contact the factory to find out how you can start enjoying FireFly Advantages.

Compare our prices, our payload lift capacities, resale values, warranty protection; the other brands will run out of features before you are halfway through the FireFly Advantages. Discover for the first time or come back to where it all began. Today’s Balloon Works offers old and new pilots more reasons to fly FireFly than any other brand.

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