A message from our Chief Pilot, Michael,
about how we choose the launch site

Balloons travel in the same direction as the wind and cannot be ‘steered’.  Kent is a small county with the sea on 3 sides so it’s important to choose the most appropriate launch site for your flight.

It is impossible to predict the wind direction at the time when you book a date for your flight.  As your Pilot I will choose the launch site once I have the most up to date forecast for the flight period.  For a morning flight this will be at 22:00 the night before.  For an evening flight it will be at 14:00 on the day of your flight.  The reason I make this decision so close to the flight time is that the accuracy of the short term forecasts is much greater.  You might be disappointed that the launch site chosen isn’t your preferred option, however, the one I choose won’t take us into controlled airspace or the sea, instead it will give us the longest and safest flight possible.