Resources Weather
Weather
Since a hot air balloon has no direct means of steerage or control the weather is an all important factor when deciding whether or not to fly. For each flight pilots must communicate with the MET office and other meteorological service providers to get the most up to date and accurate weather reports for the period intending to be airborne.
As a rough guide a pilot looks for ideal conditions, good visibility, gentle winds on the service and at 2000ft (the gradient wind). The best time these winds exist are just after sunrise and just before sunset. As a result that's why we schedule our balloon flights at these times, when the temperature is cooler and the weather is at its most stable period of the day.
If you're booked on a flight and want to check the weather we recommend the following sources and websites. Don't forget the passenger information area for more information regarding reserving a flight date.
