| Our trip to Thailand had been long awaited, originally | | | | own money into what is basically an impossible task. |
| planned for the winter of 94/95. My wife Karin had | | | | He has also been doing all sorts of stunts to show |
| bought the maps and books and even packed; we | | | | the people that he is trying to remedy the |
| were off. The balloon was ready at Thunder and Colt | | | | situation.We were asked to fly him over Bangkok to |
| with a heavy duty basket tailor made for hard use | | | | observe the traffic from the air, this being in their |
| overseas. And then they went bust. The delay | | | | words, a low cost solution. Permissions obviously had |
| meant that we missed the relatively short window | | | | to be sought. We were summoned for our first |
| available for flying in Thailand. So it was rainy old | | | | meeting with the CAA on Christmas Day, at 10 |
| England for most of the winter and a rethink of the | | | | O'clock, everybody apparently finding it amusing that |
| plan for us. I had been asked to go out there by Jon | | | | I was missing my Christmas day. On arriving it |
| Nunns having previously worked for him in South | | | | transpired that they didn't really want us to fly as it is |
| Africa flying passenger ride balloons.Jon's interest in | | | | a military state and they didn't want me to see |
| Thailand comes from several commercial tours he's | | | | anything I shouldn't. The Kings Palace is a no no to fly |
| probably had the most experience of flying in | | | | over as you should never have your head higher than |
| Thailand. Sky balloons agent in Thailand managed to | | | | his! However the civilian run Prime ministers office had |
| sell one of the first balloons to roll off the production | | | | put big pressure on and they felt they had to relent |
| line to a pair of business men who wanted to learn | | | | and by the way, what could we tell them about the |
| to fly and fly advertising banners in I come again, this | | | | other balloon and airship in Chaing Mai ( are you |
| time to train and point them the right way.So after a | | | | getting the picture that this is a warning). It |
| fantastic summer passenger flying in England, it was | | | | transpired that we held the winning hand but they |
| off on a Quantas Jumbo from a snowy December | | | | really had to tell us they did not like it first. There one |
| Heathrow. We caught a connecting flight from | | | | and only request was that I didn't fly higher than 500'. |
| Bangkok to Chaing Mai, a city in the North which was | | | | Now what! a pleasure. Royal helicopters fly at 800' so |
| hosting the South East Asia Games, ( SEA games ) | | | | that was that. I walked away on Christmas days |
| our first port of call. Jon, returning from SAGA, was | | | | with a piece of paper that ordered me to fly not |
| there for three days to ease us into things.Our hosts | | | | above 500 AGL wherever I liked! A trip then to the |
| had managed to find sponsor's a cell phone company | | | | tower at Bangkok International to let them know |
| and we had a busy schedule ahead. The city was | | | | what was happening and pick up an air chart. They |
| humming with activity related to the games and it | | | | already knew all about us and wouldn't give me an air |
| was great fun to be there. We generally flew across | | | | chart: military secrets and all that. If I'd known I could |
| the city in the mornings and over the main stadium in | | | | have brought them in England before we left!Thus it |
| the evenings.The stadium itself was about 10km | | | | came to pass that I was doing balloon traffic reports |
| from the centre of the city and lay under an east | | | | over the city of Bangkok with the deputy Prime |
| facing slope which of course moved into shade in the | | | | Minister on board and a film crew and five TV crews |
| evening allowing us to fly over the stadium and away | | | | following through the traffic. We flew two days |
| into open countryside, the mornings had the ability to | | | | doing four flights. The flights themselves were pretty |
| take us up the slope and away to the west which | | | | exciting to the point that I wouldn't rush to do them |
| was not a good idea as there was about 50km of | | | | again. The tallest building is getting on for 1000' and |
| forest and national park before the next road.It was | | | | we flew right between a bunch of them of course |
| always fairly calm and finding places to land was not | | | | stopping all the traffic as we went. For those that |
| a problem. We were not alone in the air a Carlsburg | | | | know we launched from just above Siam Square and |
| balloon had been shipped in from Europe and a | | | | flew across generally towards the Queen Siriket |
| Cameron Gas airship from America. Strangely neither | | | | Convention centre and then over the river. The 500' |
| thought to visit or call the international airport 8km | | | | level became a real pain in the afternoons as the |
| south of the stadium. This caused some amount of | | | | OAT was some 37C and thermals were popping off |
| trouble as Thai's love complicated permissions to fly | | | | all over the place I may or may not actually flown |
| and neither had any. As we did have permission we | | | | quite a bit higher at the beginning of these flights and |
| were contactable and received some amount of flack | | | | came down when it cooled down, but perhaps I'd set |
| from their CAA. We smoothed the path quite well | | | | the altimeter incorrectly!So after all the fun and |
| for them, prison was mentioned on more than one | | | | games it was off to train three people in total: our |
| occasion!The airship did a fantastic job seemingly | | | | agent and the two business men. To start with we |
| never out of the air and carrying a TV camera | | | | went off to Rayong a Province to the SE of |
| beaming live pictures from the stadium. During the | | | | Bangkok renowned for it's beach resort Pattaya. The |
| evening we tethered next to the stadium and the | | | | guys for some reason where keen to train there. |
| airship still plodded around dropping leaflets.Thai's are | | | | Unfortunately it proved too coastal and the sea |
| football fanatics and the Asian cup was also held | | | | breeze knocked out the evening flights and the land |
| during the games in the evening. Our tethers | | | | breeze in the mornings. Our permission was only for |
| coincided with all the home team games. As Thailand | | | | a 25 km square so we couldn't go any further |
| progressed through the ranks tickets sold out and it | | | | inland.Not a problem as one of the guys had relatives |
| started to get ugly at the gates. For the semi final | | | | with a farm near Kanchanaburi, home of the bridge |
| the fans burnt down the ticket tents in protest and | | | | over the river Kwai in the west of the country. It |
| several thousand extra tried to get in causing an | | | | was here that most of the training was done. It was |
| outbreak of police brutality.We tethered high allowing | | | | an ideal area for ballooning, being generally flat with |
| us to see the matches and carried PR people, they | | | | occasional 5-600 foot hills popping up like islands. The |
| tended to want to stay up a while as we had the | | | | fields are mainly of Sugar Cane roughly three |
| best view in the house!On the first and last day of | | | | quarters and the rest are rice paddies. Everything |
| the games we flew into the stadium itself, the first | | | | went fine and after three return trips to Bangkok on |
| flight by Jon, with me on board and the last by | | | | business the guys where ready. They will be travelling |
| myself. What a fantastic feeling when you drop over | | | | to England to take their PPL's shortly.One more |
| the edge of the stadium roof and come to a dead | | | | surprise lay in store. Seeing as the flying into the |
| stop amid all that noise and then pile out again, really | | | | stadium in Chaing Mai had gone so well I was asked |
| good fun, it comes highly recommended!The flights | | | | to fly into another with a football to start The Thai |
| over the city were also commendable. The airport | | | | football league. Not such a big deal but the stadium |
| required us to stay below 1000' and if we required to | | | | as 500 metres from the sea with houses all the way |
| fly higher then we had to call them on VHF. It | | | | to it. Luck was on our side once more and after two |
| worked well and of course flying across temples at | | | | days of strong monsoon winds on the day in |
| low level was fascinating. Chaing Mai old city lies | | | | question it was calm. We inflated behind a five story |
| within a square canel and contains some 300 temples | | | | building which was right next to the stadium and bang |
| in total. It was here that we aimed to overfly every | | | | on for the wind direction. The signal for us to launch |
| day. The River Ping winds it's way to the east of the | | | | was a series of fireworks the ninth being our go. At |
| old city and was very handy for big direction | | | | the practices which we couldn't fly into because of |
| changes. As a rule most wind directions could be | | | | the wind we made sure that the marching bands had |
| found and staying over the city centre for an hour or | | | | left and we had a clear stage. You know whats |
| so and then climbing and departing was fairly easy.I | | | | coming next.1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9 Go, we rose from |
| have to say that Northern Thai's seemed more fun | | | | behind the building to see that everybody was still |
| loving than their Southern countrymen. To this end | | | | stood there,down between them all I came our |
| they enjoy letting off fireworks and tissue balloons | | | | official hopped out with the football and handed it to |
| carrying balls of burning rag to keep them aloft. Not | | | | the President of Yamaha and we quickly deflated the |
| uncommon to see 10 or so cross the night sky | | | | balloon,! no way was I going to fly out of that one!So |
| glowing red when drinking a beer. They climb quite | | | | thats briefly it, I haven't touched on the really |
| high as well I flew with some at 3000'. On a couple | | | | infuriating stuff, the stuff thats supposed to add |
| of occasions, on landing villagers let off tissue balloons | | | | character afterwards. I'll let you find out all those bits |
| in our honour. They also flew bigger ones with strings | | | | for yourselves.If you are interested in going out |
| of fireworks blasting away underneath. All good stuff | | | | there then the man to contact In fact the head man |
| for balloonists to watch. The last night of the games | | | | of the brand new Balloon Club Of Thailand |
| saw the launch of in excess of 1000 of these | | | | is:-YUTAKIT WANICHANOND |
| balloons in about 10 minutes from all around the | | | | 125/135 CHANGWATANA ROAD |
| stadium, and as it was a calm night it was the | | | | PAKRET |
| prettiest balloon thing I've ever seen.So once that | | | | NONTABURI |
| was all over it was off to Bangkok eight hours South | | | | 11120 |
| by road. Unbeknown to myself we had come to the | | | | THAILAND |
| notice of the Prime Ministers office and were sought | | | | FAX 584 0042To update the story in June 04, the |
| out for a job!The deputy Prime Minister, Thakasin | | | | deputy Prime Minister became the Prime Minister and |
| Shinawat, had said on coming into office early in | | | | is poised to buy a share of Liverpool Football club in |
| 1995, that by the middle of January 1996 (or 2539 as | | | | the UK. I have since flown in Australia, Kenya and am |
| it is over there) he would sort out Bangkoks traffic | | | | now back in South Africa with my own ride business. |
| problems. He has been pouring millions of Baht of his | | | | |