Comments (0)

By Kirsty, July 31, 2010 3:24 pm

Tuesday morning this week was something of a first for Derbyshire Virgin balloon pilot Neal Parry. After a 20 year career in corporate finance, the last 16 years piloting balloons and a stint flying in Kenya’s Masai Mara, this was the first time Neal had literally had the earth moved for him!

His early morning balloon flight had launched from Bakewell showground, and drifted peacefully above Derbyshire for around an hour. The dad-of-two started to descend the balloon and picked a spacious landing spot on Chesterfield’s Grassmoor Golf Club to bring down the passengers and toast their wonderful flight.

Once on the ground, the pilot and passengers began to pack away the balloon whilst the ground crew gained access to pick up the balloon and basket and to ensure passengers were returned to their original launch site.

A nearby landscaper working on the golf club terrain appeared like a knight in shining armour and created a path for the retrieval crew to get to the balloon.

“The nice digger man (who described the digger as his “baby”!) smoothed out some of the extreme hard landscaping he was working on at Grassmoor Golf Club in order to make it easier for the crew, it was a bit of a surreal experience to have the earth moved for us!!” said pilot Neal.

Thank you to Grassmoor Golf Club for being so wonderfully accommodating.

Further information regarding hot air balloon rides from Bakewell, Derbyshire is available here.

Comments (0)

By Kirsty, July 30, 2010 2:51 pm

The saying ‘red sky at night shepherd’s delight’ was this week  for pilot Martin Collinson more like ‘red  sky at night, balloon passengers delight,’ as Virgin hot air balloon passengers ended their flight with a spectacular red sunset scene.

Martin, 44 from York, launched with a basket full of excited passengers from the city’s racecourse on Wednesday evening at 19.55hrs for an hour long balloon flight which travelled east.

“It had been raining before the flight, after the usual hour in the air we spotted one of the first cut wheat fields of the season and prepared to land there. There was a large dark cloud in  sight as we descended, but when we touched down the basket turned around 90 degrees and we were faced with a simply spectacular sunset!” said pilot Martin.

“The passengers enjoyed helping to pack away the balloon and then we had a Champagne toast in front of the red ‘Virgin-esque’ skyline, which was framed by a rainbow!” he added.

What a wonderful way end an experience of a lifetime!

More information on flying from York Racecourse is available here.

Comments (0)

By Kirsty, July 23, 2010 11:13 am

It’s normally whisky, bagpipes, tartan, haggis or the thistle and kilt amongst other things that spring to mind when thinking about the beautiful country of Scotland. There is no better way to see the dramatic landscape that ranges from mountains to plains and lowlands to highlands than from 3000 feet in the air in an iconic Virgin hot air balloon.

The diverse culture, historical landmarks and interesting geography is so much better from a bird’s eye view, so we have given you the choice of five fantastic

counties to fly from and revel in your airborne adventure;

Aberdeenshire’s Castle Fraser offers a spectacular backdrop for the launch of your Virgin balloon flight. As the most elaborate ‘z plan’ castle in Scotland the  architecture as well as the eye-catching landscaped gardens are as beautiful by foot as from up in the air.

Similarly, Angus’ Glamis Castle offers a delightfully romantic setting to see Scotland beneath the basket and drift over the castle’s 600 years of history. With a full programme of events throughout the year, you can explore the castle and gardens after your hot air balloon ride topped off with a Champagne toast.

The wonderfully grand Falkland Palace in Fife is another of our Scottish launch sites to start your hot  air ballooning experience with Virgin. The property belongs to Her Majesty the Queen, so try out your royal wave as you drift above the palace and over the county. 

Lanarkshire’s Biggar is yet another option where you can rise to the sky and gaze down at the famous site of the Battle of Biggar where William Wallace defeated the British. The fantastically rich landscape offers a lot to spot too.

Perthshire presents not one but two launch sites for you to choose from, with the airfield and city launch sites both allowing you to see some of the very best bits of Scotland … how ever will you choose?! 

We hope to see you in the sky above stunning Scotland!

Comments (0)

By Kirsty, July 16, 2010 1:49 pm

For 67 years Nelson Mandela has dedicated his life to fighting for the rights of humanity. His constant commitment has inspired Sir Richard Branson and the team at Virgin Balloon Flights to give something back to our communities through the ‘Mandela Day’ campaign with Virgin Unite.

When a personal video message form Sir Richard landed in our inboxes, we put on our thinking caps and set about deciding how to give just 67 minutes of our time each to make a difference to the community. Watch Richard’s video message here!

Celebrating both Sir Richard’s and Nelson Mandela’s birthdays on the 18^th July, Virgin Balloon Flights decided to go full throttle for two weeks in the run up to Mandela Day. This is how we have swapped our personal time for community time;

• As a thank you for continued support to keeping our county safe we baked cakes for the men on shift at the local fire station. 
• Three litter pickers filled three bin liners in their 67 minutes to clean up local rubbish.
• Wednesday was weeding day and our local green spaces are now looking pretty.
• Babysitting for single parents from a local church group was one evening’s agenda.
• We blogged about a charity in need on our corporate blog page to support their ongoing campaign to get their charity mascot around the world in 80 ways, ‘Clatterbridge’ cancer charity blog
• Using our social media tools we tried our best to spread the word about Mandela Day and how to get involved.
• A donation of Virgin caps, pens and key rings was sent with a fellow volunteer to the children of The Pattaya Orphanage in Thailand.
• We sent home baked cakes to put a smile on the faces of the local PDSA team, the animal welfare charity for pets in need of vets.
• 7 bags of recycling were carted off to the local town recycling plant keeping our ‘Green Office Plan’ up to scratch.
• Bags of dried and tinned food were collected and delivered to Teresa, the tenancy support officer for the council’s temporary accommodation and homelessness services.
• Another cake day with local charity ‘Chairs and Spares’ receiving home baked cakes for helping those in the community who can’t afford to furnish their homes.
• The final day, 67 items of jumble donated to a local Oxfam shop were gratefully received by volunteers Janet, Mikki and Liam.

Virgin Unite’s Charlotte Goodman said: “We are blown away by all the activities that the Virgin Balloon Flights team have carried out to celebrate the 67 Campaign and Nelson Mandela’s birthday. The whole team are fully behind the initiative and have had a real impact in their local community. What a leading example they are; a great example of business as a force for good.”

The whole team at Virgin Balloon Flights have thoroughly enjoyed giving their time each day for the good of our local community; working together we can gain great momentum to make a difference. Mandela Day has been such an inspiration and we hope to be involved again in the future.

Comments (0)

By Kirsty, July 16, 2010 9:36 am

Yorkshire balloon pilot Dave Sutcliffe was bowled over last week as England cricketer Tim Bresnan took to the skies with him, just a day after beating Bangladesh in the one-day series.

Tim Bresnan and Hannah 3000 feet up!

The top Yorkshire and England bowler, 25, bought Virgin Balloon Flight vouchers as a surprise gift for girlfriend Hannah’s birthday.

“We’re both quite adventurous, and I wanted to think of something unusual to celebrate Hannah’s birthday. Neither of us had flown in a hot air balloon before so I bought the tickets and told Hannah the night before the flight,” said Tim, who is originally from Pontefract in West Yorkshire.

“I was quite nervous, but it’s actually very surreal when you’re up there, it’s a weird sensation and we really enjoyed it! We got to see horses, hares, deer and even a windmill,” he added.

Pilot Dave, 43, said: “It took me a while to realise where I knew Tim from, then I realised who he was when completing the passenger safety briefing. It was only the day before I was watching him help win the series against Bangladesh at Edgbaston.”

“All the passengers sang happy birthday to Tim’s girlfriend Hannah at 2,500 feet in the air. It was a great flight topped off with a Champagne toast after landing in Church Fenton.”

After England’s win, Tim will enjoy a week’s break before getting back on the pitch and a Virgin Balloon Flight was the perfect way to start his week off.

More information regarding Virgin Balloon Flights in Yorkshire is available here.

Comments (0)

By Kirsty, July 14, 2010 4:17 pm

Jamie and Sarah enjoying their Champagne toast after landing

Each year we fly over 30,000 passengers all around the UK, but unfortunately every season a small number of people miss their flights because they don’t arrive in time.

One couple who recently had a close call was Jamie and Sarah, from Liversedge in West Yorkshire, who last week had to make an unexpected dash to catch their early morning Virgin balloon ride.

Pilot Martin Collinson was preparing for take-off, balloon fully inflated, at the York Racecourse launch site when latecomers Sarah and Jamie arrived.

 “I called over to them to hurry as we were quite close to take-off and the couple sprinted over. Fortunately I had time to give them the necessary flight safety briefing, then I completed my preparations, pulled the pin and we were off.

“It isn’t uncommon for people to believe the basket is empty due to its height and not realise that, actually, everyone is already seated inside ready for launch. Luckily, on that day, conditions allowed them to catch the flight at that stage, but generally people arriving after check-in are not able to fly,” Martin added.

Jamie, 27, and Sarah, 31, were relieved to make the flight which they took to celebrate both their birthdays and the recent arrival of baby son William. Not realising just how late they were, an apologetic Jamie said: “I made a special effort to help pack away the balloon after landing to make it up to the others!

“We loved it though and, despite Sarah’s initial reservations with her fear of heights, we thoroughly enjoyed it. A fabulous morning,” he added.

Topped-off with a Champagne toast after landing and a certificate signed by pilot Martin and Sir Richard Branson, the fortunate couple got to accomplish their airborne adventure…unfortunately not all latecomers are so lucky.

When you have booked your balloon flight, remember to call your designated flight line, found on your booking confirmation, to hear your flight status and pilot message. This will let you know where and what time to meet to ensure you don’t miss your ballooning experience.

If you arrive after check-in it is at the pilot’s discretion whether you can fly and generally it is not possible. As with any airline, it is your responsibility to arrive on time. If you miss your balloon flight we have still incurred the same costs as if we flew you and therefore voucher will become invalid.

So, to avoid disappointment, please plan your route to all possible launch sites (primary and back-up sites) and leave plenty of time to get there.

Don’t miss the boat (balloon)!

Comments (1)

By Kirsty, July 12, 2010 3:28 pm

Another sky high proposal has been accepted as Yorkshire man Mark Barrett, 26 asked for Emily Rockliff’s hand in marriage whilst 3000 feet above the county, aboard a Virgin hot air balloon.  

Emily 23, met Mark 5 years ago at their local amateur dramatics group, the ‘Harrogate Phoenix Players’ and had no idea he was about to pop the question during flight from their Ripley Castle launch site.

The couple, from Knaresborough north Yorkshire said “We both really enjoyed the flight, the weather was gorgeous and sunny and you could see for miles around!”

“Emily’s favourite part was when I proposed and apart from her saying yes, my favourite part was the whole experience from helping to inflate the balloon to packing it away. Also picking out the towns and villages we recognised below,” added Mark. 

Virgin Balloon Flights pilot Dave Sutcliffe known as ‘Sutty’, said “It was a pleasure to have the happy couple on board; we celebrated with a traditional Champagne toast after landing as we do with all hot air balloon rides. We wish them the very best for the future.”

Congratulations Mark & Emily from all of us here at Virgin Balloon Flights!

More information regarding hot air balloon flights in Yorkshire is available here.

The happy couple after a sky high proposal

Comments (0)

By Alex, July 8, 2010 11:40 am

Clatterbridge Cancer Research’s summer fundraiser ‘Around the World in 80 ways’ - which Virgin Balloon Flights is supporting - has got off to a great start.

The Merseyside charity is asking people to get fit and active by completing a mile of activity in any non-engine powered way they like and donating £2 per mile on the 80 Ways Clatterbridge campaign site.

In total the charity wants to cover 25,000 miles, enough to travel the world for cancer research, and in doing so raise £50,000 to fund 2 cancer research scientists for one year.  

The streets of Liverpool have come to life with those covering their mile by walking, hopping, skipping and cycling and solicitors Brabners Chaffe Street even covered some miles on spacehopper! But this is only the start and this July a ‘walk for health’ group of 400 are taking part and covering their miles on foot in the city’s parks.

Local school children have been skipping to their lessons and dog walkers have been upping their daily walk to cover more even more miles for the campaign.  For every mile covered, the charity’s mascot ‘Clatterbridge Chick’ will virtually travel a mile by hot air balloon – showing everyone how close we are to the target of covering 25,000 miles and beating the pants off cancer!

Find out more and download a get involved pack from the Clatterbridge campaign site.

Comments (2)

By Kirsty, July 8, 2010 8:55 am

A Yorkshire balloon pilot got a spectacular first glimpse of this year’s York Maze as he took to the skies with a basket full of passengers who got exclusive snaps of the Battle of Britain inspired attraction.

Martin Collinson, from York, flies for Virgin Balloon Flights and launched from the city’s Racecourse flying east when they drifted over the commemorative maze last week.

Martin, who has been an employment officer for the Territorial Army for 25 years, said: “It is great to see people remembering the armed forces. The design is fantastic and the passengers really enjoyed it.”

The larger than life Spitfire design, which covers an area larger than 15 Wembley football pitches and consists of 1.5 million maize plants, is “a tribute to the servicemen of the country” according to maze owner Tom Pearcy.

“Each year we choose a topical event to motivate our designs and the 70^th anniversary of the Battle of Britain seemed perfectly fitting for 2010,” he added.

Balloon passenger Craig Mitchell, of North Yorkshire, said: “We flew with Virgin for my girlfriend’s birthday and were not expecting to get an exclusive view. We were so impressed with the maze design. Both my Grandparents were in the war, so it’s nice to see people recognising their efforts.”

Pilot Martin,43, flies champagne balloon flights from numerous launch sites in Yorkshire and hopes to thrill many more passengers with the Maze throughout the summer with the attraction open from July 17 until the September 5.

Find out more at www.yorkmaze.com or take a flight with Virgin Balloon Flights at www.virginballoonflights.co.uk

York Maze Spitfire design 2010