Over the Alps in a Gas Balloon

With Tomas Hora and Dominik Haggeney (visit german site for pictures)

Before starting in Bitterfeld, north of Leipzig, we bundled up for the frosty temperatures at our planned altitude of about 5,000 meters. Our goal: crossing the Alps by gas balloon to Italy! Oxygen is required at high altitudes. We chose face masks over nasal cannulas to protect our sensitive nasal mucosa.

Sunrise and Flight Conditions

The sunrise appeared like a great fire, promising warmth after the cold night, with only good clothing and several HeatPaxx from HeatPack.de keeping us warm. The balloon flew steadily at up to 85 km/h at 5,000 meters. The first peaks of the Alps came into view, and the air traffic controllers in Munich courteously guided various incoming airplanes close to us.

Scenic Views

We saw glaciers northeast of "Wildspitze," the highest peak in the Ötztal Alps at 3,772 meters, and near "Mittlere Hintereisspitze." The south side of the Alps was almost snow-free, and we could see Lake Garda in the southwest.

Landing

Before landing, the balloon, at nearly 5,000 meters, had only about 55% of its volume remaining. Further venting to take pictures made the balloon even slimmer. We made a "Hofratslandung" in the Italian late autumn, with remnants of frozen sand ballast.

We thank Tomas Hora and Dominik Haggeney for sharing these impressions from a gas balloon ride over the Alps.