Meanwhile, Professor Charles with assistance of Aine & Cadet Robert were hard at work building their hydrogen balloon.

Their design on a 27ft sphere of rubberised silk enclosed in a net with basket attached. An opening at the bottom to allow gas to escape as it expands and a wooden toggle spring loaded valve at the top of the balloon to allow the pilot to vent air to descend remains largely unchanged even today.

With the recent success of the Montgolfier balloon a crown of 400,000 pole, half the population of Paris turned out to see its launch on 1st December 1783. The balloon was inflated away from the large crowd and in the shelter of the trees on the Grande Ave and once inflated it was manhandled, under police guard to the launch site and the gondola in the fields of Tuileries Gardens.

With the balloon held down by many willing hands their equipment and ballast was loaded. Charles then handed Joseph Montgolfier a small balloon and asked him to release to check to winds prior to launch with the words, ‘ It is for you, monsieur, to show us the way to the skies’.

The first gas balloon launch. 1st December 1783

In stark contrast to the slow ponderous ascent of the Montgolfier balloon Charles leapt into the air eagerly, taking only moments to reach a height of 1,800 ft. The vast crowd were stunned into silence only breaking into a great roar of jubilation after the pilots waved flags signalling. all was well.

And what of the aeronauts? Their own descriptions says it all. Charles, “Nothing will ever equal that moment of joyous excitement which filled my whole being when I felt myself flying away from the earth. It was not mere pleasure; it was perfect bliss”. And Aine, “I care not may be the condition of the earth, it is the sky that is for me now. What serenity, what a ravishing scene”. It still remains the same for people who fly today.

Their word give an ideal how perfect their flight went. After over 2 hours of flight they landed gently beside the town of Nesles, 27 miles from the launch site. So excited was Charles that after off landing and removing his passenger and more ballast he took to the skies by himself. Shooting into the sky, like and arrow he estimated that he flew to a height of over 10,000 feet before ether balloon stopped ascending.

Climbing so high he witnessed two sunsets and the vast temperature changes between the ground and high altitude. His decent was more controlled with yet another gentle landing completed after another 35 minute flight.

It was to be Charles’s first and last fight. Even though it was obvious that he was a natural and portrayed a calm and collected composure it was thought that the meteoric solo ascent to 10,000ft alarmed him so much that he resolved never to fly again.

The general public we now ‘mad’ about ballooning with miniature balloons raised by burning alcohol soaked fabric flying around the city. So concerned were the authorities that an order was made banning then due to the fire risk.

Want to enjoy a hot air balloon experience. Hot air balloon tasmania carries out flights daily all year round nearby the city of Launceston in Northern Tasmania.

Click here to view more information and to book a balloon flight. www.hotairballoontasmania.com.au

Ballooning- It's a gas!