I would think in Kevin's case that he has to be very pleased, ... He's making one of the finest balloon flights ever, and he had not previously made a long balloon flight. It's outstanding so far.

I would think in Kevin's case that he has to be very pleased. He's making one of the finest balloon flights ever, and he had not previously made a long balloon flight. It's outstanding so far.

Whereas my falling in the Coral Sea almost killed me -- because that was in a thunderstorm in a ruptured balloon -- the most dangerous thing in the world,

We were dragged for at least a couple of miles and probably bounced 50 times before the balloon settled down enough so we could get outside the capsule and jump into the water,

Flying solo, you have a fair workload. I'm not only flying the balloon but doing the navigation, communications, repairing the burners, taking care of the equipment.

A hot air balloon requires a great deal of fuel to keep it aloft, so that you can't fly it even for one day. A gas balloon, which usually uses helium, has the problem that the helium cools at night when the sun is not on it, and you have to throw ballast overboard to keep it from going to the surface.