|
Aerostar International
1814 "F" Ave.
Sioux Falls, SD 57104
Tel: (605) 331-3500
Fax: (605) 331-3520
E-mail: sales@aerostar.com
© 2007 Aerostar International
All Rights Reserved
In association with:
BFA, BBAC, NACDA,
IFAI, PIA, IAAPA & IFEA
|
|
Ballooning History
In 1960 the
evolution of the hot air balloon
flared
in one bright burst
after 177 years
of virtually
static advancement.
Since brothers
Joseph and Etienne Montgolfier
launched the first unmanned hot
air balloon
in France
in 1783, comparatively
little progress had
been
made in ballooning.
But that all changed in October of 1960
when
some imaginative people launched the first
manned hot air
balloon flight with a continuous
burner source and petroleum
fuel --
the birth of the modern day balloon system.
|
 |
 |
The curious, imaginative and creative
people responsible
for this
metamorphosis in hot air ballooning
were from a
fledging company
founded only four years earlier
named Raven
Industries.
Located in Sioux Falls, South Dakota,
Raven Industries was
formed by
a small group of aeronautical
researchers who had
all been
working for a division of General Mills
that was
dedicated to the scientific
balloon business.
|
The primary purpose of the new
company
was to supply plastic products to the
agricultural
market.
But the fascination and passion of ballooning compelled
the founders to keep alive a second purpose: that of entering
into the scientific
balloon industry utilizing the imagination
and innovation by which they would
come to be defined.
Initially, Raven Industries’ balloon business consisted of
offering a free research
balloon to the US Navy on a trial basis.
|
|
 |
That wild shot struck its mark and
Raven Industries
found itself producing
a line of
polyethylene high-altitude
balloons used for research in the
near space environment of 100,000
to 150,000 foot altitudes.
Such high altitude balloons with
capsules carrying mice, monkeys
and even cosmic ray measuring
devices served as a key proving
ground for establishing man’s
compatibility in space.
|
After 1960, with the revolution in hot air
ballooning
having
taken place, Raven
engineers continued to single-handedly
create
the cutting edge:
burner development,
fuel supply, envelope
materials
and flight characteristics
were
perpetually and
obsessively
researched and designed.
Which perhaps explains why
the hot air balloon basket didn’t appear until 1963. In those
early years, the
tug of war between
man-controlling-the-balloon
and
the balloon-controlling-man
dominated
the high spirited (and
sometimes hilarious)
development of the modern hot air balloon. |
 |
 |
Early hot air balloon sales were made
exclusively
to the
government for military
and research applications. But by the
mid
1960s
some adventuresome folks
outside of the ranks
of Raven
Industries employees began
buying the balloons for recreation
and sport.
The potential of recreational ballooning
seemed
obvious, so Raven engineers set
about meeting and, in many ways,
defining conformance requirements for obtaining
an FAA Type
Certificate for a hot air
balloon aircraft.
The FAA issued Type
Certificate
#A15CE for Raven model S-50A in 1968.
From that
moment through the mid
1970s a tremendous growth in private
balloon purchases unfolded.
|
Ballooning and Raven both continued
to expand through the end of
the decade
and on into the 1980s. In 1980 Raven
became the
first South Dakota
corporation to be listed on the
American
Stock Exchange,
showcasing companies continued
growth,
success and diversity.
Made up of successful divisions producing
everything from electronics to ski clothing
(all of which were
born from balloon
research), Raven Industries chose to
create a
new wholly owned subsidiary
titled
Aerostar International, Inc.
|
 |
 |
On February 1, 1986 Aerostar was born
with the completed
transfer of Raven
Industries’ type certificates, production
certificates and maintenance certificate.
With their newfound,
full-time focus on
ballooning, the former employees
of the Raven
hot air balloon department
enjoyed
a freedom to concentrate
completely on ballooning products.
|
The results over
subsequent years, while solidly in the Raven tradition of
technological advancement and esthetic changes, have arguably
surpassed
the pace set by Raven while it
invented an industry.
The accomplishments and advancements
have been continuous,
diverse and so numerous it would be impossible to
list them all.
|
|
 |
Some examples of these accomplishments
run
the entire gamut of the unique and
enthralling
business of building
hot air balloons:
• Burner output grew exponentially to the
point where now "30,000,000 BTU"
burners are the norm at Aerostar
• Wireless
instrumentation
• Flexi-rigid upright systems
• Continued
refinements in product testing
• Exclusive fabrics manufactured
specifically
for the rigorous application
of ballooning
•Taking the most complex ideas for
special shape hot air balloons
from the
sketch pad to the reality of the sky
|
The future of ballooning remains to be
written,
and we see only
increased
potential for technological advance,
increased
safety
and enhanced
enjoyment
of ballooning.
Aerostar International,
supported by
the tradition and resources of Raven
Industries,
looks
to the next
millennium -- and to the skies
-- with an
eagerness
borne of experience,
and a smile borne of the
childlike
wonder that flight
has forever inspired. |
 |
Contact Us For Hot Air Balloon-Factory Support
|
|
