Large crowds were drawn to the third day of the Pattaya International Balloon Festival to see hot air balloons from countries including the UK, USA, Japan, Thailand and Malaysia taking to the skies, this was the first time the crowds have had the opportunity to see the balloons fly and each balloon was enthusiastically cheered as it soared off in to the sky. Scroll down to check out the photos from the third day of the Pattaya balloon festival.
The Pattaya International Balloon Fiesta is hosted jointly by the Sport Flying Association of Thailand, the Singha Corporation and the Tourism Authority of Thailand.
The first professional balloon pilot in Thailand is Mr. Yut Wanichanond. he has been flying balloons both in Thailand and internationally for over 20 years.
Hot air balloons were first discovered in France way back in 1783 by brothers Joseph and Etienne Montgolfier, they also made the first manned hot air balloon flight after initially using animals.
The high altitude record for a hot air balloon was set on November 26, 2005, when Vijaypat Singhania reached an altitude of 21,027 meters.
The first nonstop balloon flight around the world took place in 1999, Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones left Chateau-d’Oex, Switzerland in the Breitling Orbiter 3 on March 1st and landed in Egypt on March 21st.
