By : Malcolm W Browne

Dr Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones sailed into history on 20th March 1999 when their Breitling Orbiter 3 completed the first nonstop balloon trip around the world a goal many had sought but never achieved.

Dr. Bertrand Piccard

At 10:54 AM (4:54 AM Eastern time) at an altitude of 36,000 feet, their balloon sped past the finish line at 9 degree 27 minutes west longtude over Mauritania, the longitude from which they began their 20 day voyage. The harrowing trip had taken the pilots over Europe, Africa, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, Central America and the Atlantic Ocean. When they crossed the finish line, their mission control team at Geneva airport broke into cheers and sprayed a forest of news television cameras with champagne.

"I am with the angels and just completely happy", Dr Piccard, 41 told them by satellite telephone after attaining one of aviation ‘s most elusive goals. His partner, Jones, 51, asked by the crew whether they were celebrating their achievement, replied, “The first thing I’ll do is phone my wife, and then, like tea”. Dr Piccard, who comes from a long line of accomplished scientific adventures, added that he felt that an “invisible hand” had guided the balloon along its "fantastic voyage".

After flying over the equally invisible finish point, the Breitling pilots decided to continue on for another day at high speed, finally landing in western Egypt Sunday morning.

Before reaching Egypt, the balloon flew over Libya, a nation that has sometimes barred balloonists from its airspace. “but for us Libya has been extremely helpful and cooperative"” said Alan Noble, an English balloonist and engineer who was the team’s Flight Director. The Breitling Orbiter 3’s lifting gas cooled on Saturday night and the balloon descended slowly to the ground. A team was waiting to pick up the two aeronauts. Since the balloonists had more than a day’s supply of propane fuel aboard when they reached the specified longitude, they extended the flight to the Nile desert.

They had hoped to set down near the Pyramids in cairo, but the winds took them too far south, their meteorologists said. In any case, the Swiss Post Office announced on Saturday that it would issue a commemorative stamp honoring the balloon on Wednesday. Aside from establishing the greatest record in ballooning history, the Breitling’s crew has met the requirement by which they will receive $ 1 million from the Anheuser-Busch brewing company as well as the Budweiser Cup, offered to the first balloonist to circumnavigate the earth without landing.

Dr Piccard a medial doctor and psychiatrist, said that it would be sad to part with the balloon, which will never be used again. The Breitling Orbiter 3, built by Cameron Balloons Ltd o Bristol, England, is known to have cost about $ 2 million a sum that did not include salaries for a 13 members ground crew and other expenses. In the grip of a powerful jet stream, the balloon was traveling at about 130 miles on hour on Saturday when it passed high over the finishing point. Noble said that Egyptian helicopters were prepared to pick up Dr Piccard and Jones and that their gondola might be retrieved by truck.

The flight was a triumph of piloting skill, helped by steady improvements in balloon technology over the years and superb meteorological forecasting. Without that, the balloon could not have threaded its way round storms, mountain peaks, hostile airspace, unruly winds, stagnant air and other hazards.

The danger of drifting over unfriendly territory is no idle hazard. Balloonists were stunned in 1995 when two Americans taking balloon race drifted from Poland into Belarus, where they were shot down and killed by a Belarusian helicopter.

China and Russia have been reluctant to admit balloonists. The Breitling team was permitted into Chinese airspace this time, a but only on condition that their craft remain south of the 26th parallel.

Since they have no power of their own, balloons are at the mercy of whatever winds they encounter. However, there are many low-speed wind circulation patterns at lowwer altitudes, and by maneuvering between altitudes, skillful balloonists aided by competent meteorology ground teams can generally find a wind going their way. This allows a balloon to change lanes, so to speak, picking a direction that avoids hazards and leads into an appropriate jet stream.

Advanced computer modeling of the earth’s hour-to-hour wind patterns, coupled with observations by satellites, commercial airlines, ships and other sources, allows meteorologists to guide balloonists with great accuracy.

The development of the global positioning satellite system permits precise and continuous measurement of a balloon’s position and altitude, and satellite communications allow ground controllers to track a balloon continuously and calculate its best altitude.

Fellow balloonists were jubilant about the Breitling’s success. “There was an enormous cheer when we heard that they had crossed the line”, said Cameron, whose company built the history making balloon. “There is a certain amount of champagne being drunk here”. Branson, who made four failed attempts to circle the globe, told SKY television in London, “It is a magnificent achievement, and two delightful people have achieved it”.

(An AP feature)