Chiltern Region

British Balloon and Airship Club

Retrieving

Most balloon flights consist of taking off from a given location, flying for about an hour, and then landing at another location, generally somewhere within a 20 mile radius of the starting point. It is then necessary to get the balloon, pilot and passengers back to the starting point in order to, for example, pick up vehicles which will have been left at this location.

It is therefore, generally, essential to have a retrieve crew to follow the balloon during its flight, normally staying in touch by radio. (N.B. The use of mobile phones during a flight is illegal!) The retrieve crew is normally comprised of two people, namely a driver and a navigator, who follow the balloon with the retrieve vehicle (usually a 4 x 4 and a trailer).

Keeping up with the balloon can be quite a challenging task in fast wind conditions. However, in these days of satellite navigation it is becoming rare for the retrieve crew to have difficulty locating the balloon, even when it is out of sight.

On landing therefore, the crew are usually close at hand to help with packing up of the balloon, and everyone can then be ferried back to the start location in the retrieve vehicle.

Before this happens, however, a number of tasks must be carried out. The first priority is to find the owner of the landing site and seek permission to recover the balloon. Most farmers/landowners are quite friendly towards balloonists - providing no damage has been caused. Pilots aim to avoid areas where landowners have previously objected to balloons landing on their property. These regions are designated as "sensitive areas" (SAs) and are marked on balloonists' maps.

Often the balloon pilot is able to speak to the landowner and obtain permission to retrieve the balloon fairly soon after landing. However, sometimes the retrieve crew have to spend a considerable amount of time making enquiries in the district, before the relevant landowner is located.

Each retrieve is as unique as the balloon flight itself, and many people involved in ballooning enjoy retrieving just as much as flying. Retrieving is certainly an integral part of the ballooning experience!