what is quick to fly but having flown it stops to rest

A Virgin hot air balloon ride here in the United kingdom of great britain and northern ireland is i of the nearly spectacular and unforgettable experiences you will ever bask.

But to say the British atmospheric condition is unpredictable is an understatement.

Where else is information technology non unheard of to get snowfall in May and droughts in winter?

Getting the correct conditions for our hot air balloon flights is vital not just for a smooth and enjoyable flight but more importantly for the safety of our passengers.

The term 'fair weather friends' is highly appropriate to describe Virgin Airship Flights' human relationship with the UK climate.

The lesser line is that if the weather condition weather are not safe for flight a airship, we simply can't and won't put our passengers at adventure.

Y'all tin can read more about why we have to abolish flights in an before blog we posted here.

But in this post, nosotros wanted to explain in more than detail just how the atmospheric condition affects our flights, how likely your flight is to be cancelled and what we will practise for yous to make certain you do get up in the air.

So what is 'perfect ballooning weather'?

In cursory, the perfect weather conditions our hot air balloons need to fly are:

• Dry
• Good visibility
• Light winds of less than x-12 miles per hour

Winds fifty-fifty a piffling stronger than ten-12 miles per hour are simply too strong for u.s. to be fully confident of your condom and we would never hazard our passengers past flight in such atmospheric condition.

Although rarer, sometimes we have the reverse situation, in that there is not enough air current to fly. In these cases, y'all simply wouldn't go anywhere once you are up in the air.

Poor visibility is an piece of cake ane besides. The whole point of a hot air airship flight is to enjoy spectacular views of our gorgeous United kingdom landscapes.

If yous tin can't see anything, information technology would be a wasted trip, not to mention the added risk of a pilot trying to fly up to 16 passengers in a 120ft tall, ii.5 tonne slice of equipment 2,000 feet in a higher place the footing when they tin can't clearly see where they're going.

Again, nosotros would never adventure it.

But why don't we fly when it's raining? Surely a light shower of rain won't affect things that much, right?

The fact is, yeah it does and much more than than you might imagine.

The top of a hot air airship in flight is nigh 100 degrees centigrade. If pelting falls on the airship, information technology cools it downwards, significant the pilot has to use the burners a lot more to get the heat back up again enough to stay in the air.

And then even a gentle pelting shower tin make a hot air balloon harder to command.

But it's a sunny, dry solar day outside with hardly any wind?

This could very well be the case downwardly on the ground but retrieve that a hot air balloon travels at anything upward to v,000 feet in the air.

Both air current management and strength tin can differ the higher y'all go.

An unstable weather system likewise causes problems, as the wind speed and direction tin can become unpredictable.

Information technology could be that the current of air direction would take the airship a distance or direction the pilot has concerns most, such as towards restricted airspace or an surface area where his experience shows in that location are few suitable landing spots.

Our pilots don't only bear out a quick cheque of the BBC Atmospheric condition website before making a conclusion whether to become ahead with or cancel a flight.

That'south fine if you're wondering whether or not to have a barbecue but nowhere near good plenty when you're deciding whether to take more than than a dozen people on a in one case-in-a-lifetime hot air balloon trip.

They instead receive detailed, specialist aviation weather forecasts that give the wind speeds and directions at various different heights.

It really can be a dry, sunny 24-hour interval but if winds are not right at the levels we fly, our pilots volition not risk your safety.

Virgin Balloon Flights has some of the best, most experienced and enthusiastic hot air balloon pilots in the globe.

They are balloon pilots because they are and so passionate about hot air ballooning.

They dearest to wing and want to practice and then as often equally they can.

Most of them fifty-fifty caput out to warmer climes during our non-flight flavor in the winter just so they tin can fly some more for their own enjoyment. (Read more near our master pilot Ken and Yorkshire pilot Dave's lifelong beloved for ballooning here and here.)

If they brand the conclusion that weather are non safe to fly y'all, and so they're not.

Why do we simply fly in the morning and evening?

Mornings generally offer the best conditions for hot air ballooning.

Winds are generally at their lightest presently later dawn then as the sun comes upwards, it warms the ground, which in turn heats the air above it causing thermals (or columns of ascension air).

These thermals cause updrafts and downdrafts that impact whatsoever pilot's ability to safely control the balloon'due south altitude, no matter how skilled they are.They can also cause unpredictable gusts of wind and even without the safety issues this could cause, nobody wants to be buffeted dorsum and along on what should be a gentle and serene trip through the skies.

As evening approaches and the air cools once more, these thermals reduce one time more than, meaning we can wing in the evenings if conditions let. You can read more most how thermals can even affect one of the biggest hot air balloon festivals in the world, Bristol Airship Fiesta, hither.

How likely is it that your flight will be cancelled?

There is no piece of cake answer to this.

The brusque answer is, it might be and you should be prepared for the possibility each fourth dimension you book.

And whether your flight is cancelled or not really is downwardly to pure luck.

Some of our passengers are lucky and become to fly first time or after only 1 counterfoil.

For others it tin can take several attempts and, depending on when they are able to rebook, these cancellations can exist spread beyond more than just one flying season.

We tin't run across into the future so there is no way when you make your booking that we tin can tell you whether or non your flight will go ahead on that solar day.

But this is non a unique situation to Virgin Balloon Flights.

We've been in business for 21 years and are proud to say nosotros are the largest commercial balloon flight operator in the UK.

That means we have a LOT more than customers than many of the smaller, local balloon operators.

Just all of u.s.a., regardless of size, are weather condition dependent and none of us will put our passengers at gamble when it is not safe to fly.

What happens if your flight does get cancelled?

After any cancellation on our office, nosotros will always brand sure that yous have at least vi months left on your vouchers to book another flight.

If this means we accept to extend your vouchers beyond their initial 12 or xviii-month validity, then we volition.

Every time you lot book a flight, the booking confirmation you lot receive from us has the new decease engagement of your voucher should information technology get cancelled.

It doesn't matter how many times your flying might go cancelled on our part, we will extend your voucher every single time until you do get upward in the air.

All you have to practice is make sure you take made at to the lowest degree one flight booking within the validity period left on your voucher.

It is very of import that you exercise make a booking before your new decease date in guild for your voucher to remain valid.

Nosotros have a lovely bunch of people in our call eye, who are very happy to help y'all with what flight dates are available if you haven't been able to notice anything suitable on the website.

This helpful lot are available on 01952 212750 or past emailing customerservice@virginballoonflights.co.uk.

Virtually of our vouchers exercise not have a refund pick but we do have ane, our National seven-Day Anytime Plus choice that does offer a refund post-obit a minimum number of cancellations on our part.

Our total terms and atmospheric condition on cancellations and the remainder of our service can be found here.

Is it worth the wait?

Nosotros can 100% reply this with a YES.

When they do get up in the air, even passengers who have had several cancellations over more than than one flying season tell us that it has been worth the wait.

"Breathtaking", "tranquil", "unforgettable", "stunning", "a dream come up true" and "incredible" are just some of the words nosotros have heard from passengers once they come back downwardly to globe.

Even in Scotland, where the weather can sometimes exist even more challenging than south of the border in England, those who accept flown give usa great reviews.

And if yous need more than disarming, this video of 1 of our flights gives you another taste of what awaits you lot when your flying does go ahead.

We all love what we do hither at Virgin Balloon Flights and knowing we helped someone brand unique memories to terminal a lifetime makes our chore even more worthwhile.

If nosotros could, nosotros would have our hot air balloons in the skies 365 days a year.

But because this is just not possible thanks to our unpredictable friend the British conditions, we do everything nosotros can to make sure your flight is admittedly perfect when it does go ahead.

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Source: https://www.virginballoonflights.co.uk/blog/hot-air-ballooning-british-weather-friends-foes

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