PH-JOY hot-air balloon

[schwep]

PH-JOY
It may be nice to know that this balloon, built end 1986, made its first flight in January 1987 in the Netherlands and has since made about 700 flights. It has been rebuilt several times in steps, and modified to stay up to date. Major revisions of the envelope were done by Ad Ballon Ballonvaarten BV in Breda, Netherlands, in 1995 and 1999, in 2010 by Ultramagic Balloons in Spain and again by Ad Ballon Ballonvaarten in Breda in January 2016. Modifications were the use of ultralast material in the top half, the addition of rotation vents, a change of colour pattern (light blue panels replaced with silver), replacement of the original Thunder Mk2 burners by Colt Mk2 double burners - subsequently modified as well to increase power and reduce noise.
This balloon participated in 15 Dutch national ballooning championships, 5 times the Coupe d'Europe in France, once in the French national championships and several times in the World Honda Grand Prix. It was flown by its owner solo over the Austrian Alps.
PH-JOY, 29 years old at the time of this post, is still actively flying, in France, piloted by its original owner.
http://ballonbleu.free.fr