Balloon Record Bid Called Off

Posted on Wednesday, 3 September, 2003 | 3 comments

A British team attempting to break the world altitude record for a crewed balloon have called off their mission after a last-minute hitch.At 0655 BST, with the envelope inflated to about 50 feet (15 metres), helium started to escape from the polythene structure and it collapsed. The project has been put on hold while investigations are carried out.

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Source: BBC News

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Recent comments on this story

#1 Posted by Althalus on 3 September, 2003, 7:17
That must be terrible, to get all worked up about trying to break the record, only to have it squashed by a rip in the seam.And then they find out that it may be another year before they can do it again.

#2 Posted by SaRuMaN on 3 September, 2003, 7:20
Yeah, I feel sorry for all those involved in the record attempt. It's a dam shame that they didn't even get a chance to lift off. Still, it's better to be safe than sorry. Hope they have better luck next year.

#3 Posted by Kaia Pythia on 3 September, 2003, 9:29
QUOTE Early indications suggest a broken seam at the top of the QinetiQ 1 balloon was the cause of the failure. It's better that they figure this out now before they take off, rather than the seam breaking when they are thousands of feet up in the sky. Too bad for them though. Hope they have b...

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