19 Sep 2016
The race is on! Gas-balloonists from a dozen countries launched early this morning at the start of what is aviation’s oldest and most prestigious gas-balloon race – the 60th Coupe Aéronautique Gordon Bennett. Forty-eight pilots in 24 gas-balloons – two pilots in each balloon – set off from Gladbeck...
19 Sep 2016
Balloonists are now well on track, with two distinct groups developing. Slightly to the west and behind is what we’ll call the slower group. This group will be aiming to pass the Alps to the west... Good morning from race control in Gladbeck. Balloonists are now well on track, with two distinct...
19 Sep 2016
In the basket with Team SUI2 on Day 1 of the Coupe Aéronautique Gordon Bennett. Pilots Nicolas Tieche and Laurent Sciboz have covered 250km so far, and shared this amazing photo with us at Race HQ in Gladbeck. In the basket with Team SUI2 on Day 1 of the Coupe Aéronautique Gordon Bennett. Pilots...
19 Sep 2016
Leonid Tiukhtyaev broke the long-standing distance and duration records for gas ballooning in 2015 when he and co-pilot Troy Bradley flew 10,711km across the Pacific Ocean. The flight took 160.6 hours. What does he think of the race? Leonid Tiukhtyaev broke the long-standing distance and duration...
20 Sep 2016
The race has split, with one group climbing high and crossing the Alps while a second group plays strategy to the north. We update who's landed and the state of play... Here’s a catch-up of news that has happened since yesterday afternoon. Teams that landed on Monday afternoon are: NED BEL 02 BEL...
20 Sep 2016
“After 12 hours all you want to do is land.” Talking before the race launch on Sunday night, British balloonist Jonathan Harris, who has been a pilot in the Coupe Aéronautique Gordon Bennett and was there supporting Team GBR 01, explained a little about the mental side of this sport... “After 12...
