DistantNews
Support us
🇦🇺 Australia /Culture & Society

Mates make historic flight in hot air balloon over Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre

From ABC Australia · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Outcome reported
  • A historic hot air balloon flight over Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre narrowly avoided severe weather.
  • The flight was planned spontaneously by Steve Timmis and his son-in-law.
  • Pilot Trevor Wright guided the balloon through a brief weather lull for a successful, albeit rushed, journey.

A historic hot air balloon flight over Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre successfully took place over the weekend, despite a dramatic battle with wild weather. The ambitious journey was conceived spontaneously by Victorian Steve Timmis and his son-in-law, Ben, during a pub conversation.

I reckon I'm going to go up to Lake Eyre and have a look at that while its full … I reckon you should come up and we could fly a balloon across it.

— Steve TimmisRecounting the spontaneous conversation that led to the hot air balloon flight.

"I reckon I'm going to go up to Lake Eyre and have a look at that while its full … I reckon you should come up and we could fly a balloon across it," Timmis recalled saying to his son-in-law. The idea quickly gained momentum, leading to research and a reconnaissance trip with pilot Trevor Wright.

He'd already had a few beers, and he just agreed instantly … No good story starts with a salad, right?

— Steve TimmisDescribing his son-in-law's immediate agreement to the balloon flight idea.

Upon returning to William Creek, the team faced challenging conditions. "We were having gusting, up to 30-knot winds, which was way too fast for us to set up a balloon," Timmis explained. A decision was made to postpone the flight, but a brief window of calm, predicted by Wright, allowed for a rapid and successful launch.

We were having gusting, up to 30-knot winds, which was way too fast for us to set up a balloon.

— Steve TimmisExplaining the severe weather conditions that initially threatened the flight.

Ben Gowers piloted one balloon solo, while Kiff and Paterson Saunders flew another. The flight offered a unique perspective of the vast, full Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre, a rare sight.

Trevor said 'Listen, at about sun-up, usually for half an hour or 45 minutes, there's always a bit of a lull out there.'

— Steve TimmisRecounting pilot Trevor Wright's crucial weather prediction.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Australia. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog