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Who Invented the Hot Air Balloon?

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  • 1783:

    • June 4: Montgolfier brothers, Joseph-Michel and Jacques-Étienne, demonstrate the first successful hot air balloon flight in Annonay, France.

  • 1783-1784:

    • The Montgolfier brothers continue experiments and conduct public demonstrations.

  • 1783:

    • September 19: First manned flight takes place in a hot air balloon built by the Montgolfier brothers, carrying Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier and the Marquis d'Arlandes.

  • 1785:

    • Jean-Pierre Blanchard and John Jeffries make the first aerial crossing of the English Channel in a balloon.

  • 1793:

    • Jean-Pierre Blanchard performs the first successful balloon flight in North America.

  • 1804:

    • Joseph-Michel Montgolfier dies.

  • 1829:

    • Charles Green, an Englishman, sets a long-distance record by flying from London to Weilburg, Germany, covering over 480 miles in 18 hours.

  • 1870s:

    • Invention of the modern gas balloon with the use of hydrogen or helium for lift, replacing hot air.

  • 1903:

    • Auguste and Jean Piccard develop the first pressurized cabin for a balloon ascent.

  • 1960:

    • Ed Yost builds the first modern hot air balloon, using propane burners for heating the air.

  • 1978:

    • First modern hot air balloon festival held in Albuquerque, New Mexico, marking the beginning of the ballooning renaissance.

  • 1987:

    • The first solo non-stop transatlantic balloon flight is completed by Richard Branson and Per Lindstrand in the "Virgin Atlantic Flyer".

  • 1999:

    • Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones complete the first non-stop balloon circumnavigation of the globe in the Breitling Orbiter 3.

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