An adrenaline junkie soared through the air in a boat attached to hundreds of balloons today as part of a test flight for an ambitious attempt to cross the Atlantic.
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Jonathan Trappe was cheered on by crowds this at the Festival Del Globo del Leon, in Mexico, as he tested out his new equipment with an early morning flight.
Cramped in a seven foot boat the intrepid adventurer carried out the dry run as he prepares to fulfill his dream of crossing the Atlantic next year.
Accompanied by his co-pilot Nidia Ramirez, the adventurer will now fly across Mexico for 11 hours in the dry run.
A bystander said: ‘Everyone stood right next to it holding him down. Then they said launch and he let the ballast go and off he went – there was no stopping him. It went off like a rocket, it was amazing how quickly he lifted off.’
Trappe, who had worked through the night with 20 helpers filling the balloons with helium, soared above the crowd and drifted perfectly towards a nearby lake to test the emergency landing procedure.
The ‘shake-out’ test – which will give the team vital information about its capabilities – also included a landing and re-launch manoeuvre on a nearby lake, to see if it was able to land safely on water.
Just 90 seconds after take-off, Trappe cut away a several balloons and landed with a gentle splash on the water, skimming across for about four minutes. The 38-year-old then cut away a sand bag weighing the boat down.
Having checked the landings were in order he then ascended into the cloudless sky and tested the boat’s built-in satellite communication equipment.
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