CEBU, Philippines - They have been holding the Hot Air Balloon Festival in Clark Economic Zone for the last 15 years and this was something that I’ve always wanted to do. I am among the many people who have been fascinated by hot air balloons and dream of riding one since the showing of the 50s movie Around the World in 80 Days starring David Niven.
An opportunity came when I met Capt. Jose “Joy” Roa of Air Safari TV, whose Sunday show featured the aviation industry and the culture, food and people of the places he would visit. Capt. Roa invited me to be his special guest for the 15th Philippine International Balloon Fiesta last February11 to14.
Going to Clark Economic Zone (this is in Angeles City, Pampanga) is as easy as taking a direct Cebu Pacific Air flight from Cebu to the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) for a one-hour 10-minute flight. Unfortunately, there are no daily schedules yet, but this is the best way to go to Clark without passing through the hustle and bustle of Metro Manila.
To ride a hot air balloon, one has to wake up early at dawn as there is not much wind in the early morning hours. Hot air balloons can only be steered up or down using propane gas. When you turn on the propane gas you put hot air into the balloon and it is the hot air that allows the balloon to rise up and float in the air. When the hot air is gone, the balloon starts to go down. There is no forward thrust or engine to push the balloons to any direction, the balloon just relies on the direction of the wind!
I was assigned to be the passenger of the balloon team of Pilot Wolf-Dietrich and Susan Kadach, a very jolly German couple, who gave me instructions on the art of flying a hot air balloon, starting with the unfolding of the balloon from its small bag and preparing it for flight! His balloon featured the red, yellow and black colors of the German flag.
First thing to do when preparing for a hot air balloon flight is to get the fabric out of the small bag, spread it on the ground then, with a huge fan, blow cold air into the balloon. Once the balloon was semi-inflated, Pilot Wolf put his basket on its side to blow hot air into the balloon and lo and behold, air started to fill the balloon up until it stood upright in its full shape. Then we floated slowly up, up into the blue sky!
We were lucky that there were no winds in Clark Field that day and we floated around 3,000 ft. on top of the event area. After an hour, a slight breeze pushed us some 300 yards into the airport parking lot but we had to end the flight as the gas pressure had started to drop. So we landed, or should I say bumped and crash landed into the grassy parking area. But surprisingly, the basket didn’t fall on its side. The balloon stood there until most of the balloonists also started to land. Spectators rushed towards us for a photo opportunity.
On the ground, Pilot Wolf put the entire balloon on its side (the hot-air had already diminished). We folded the balloon and placed it inside the bean bag, then placed the basket on the trailer and we returned back to the hangar.
It was a short, uneventful balloon ride, but it was satisfying to know that I was able to scratch one off my bucket list!