Boot balloon told go high or go home
Can a giant boot fly over Niagara Falls?
It depends on the feet, of course. After U.K.-based boot manufacturer Hunter announced plans to fly its iconic 36-metre-tall balloon shaped like a Wellington boot over the Horseshoe Falls this week, Transport Canada stepped in.
The flight would be fine — as long as the balloon flies higher than the 3,500-foot (1,066 metres) restricted zone.
There is a two-mile-radius around the falls that extends to 3,500 feet in height where flights are restricted to only a small number of aircraft — five airplane and three tourist helicopter operators all based nearby.
“We talked to them some time ago and told them they couldn’t go over the falls unless they were about 3,500 feet,” said Transport Canada civil aviation inspector Ken Walsh.
After reading a newspaper article Monday about Hunter’s plans, Walsh reached out to the company to be sure the pilot remembers the restriction.
Monday was a windy, wet day with low-hanging clouds so it appears the boot was grounded.
“I think (the boot) is a wonderful marketing tool. But we have to consider the tourism industry,” Walsh said. “And at 3,500 feet people will be able to see the boot.”
The boot is on a continentwide promotional tour. Representatives for Hunter couldn’t be reached for comment.
The height restriction was put in place after two serious incidents that happened nearly 30 years ago, one of which left four people dead.
In 1989, a Niagara Falls, N.Y.based tourist helicopter took off carrying three passengers. Flying along the side of the gorge, it passed so close to the Whirlpool Aero Car — it was carrying 17 passengers — the helicopter’s landing rails were torn off.
The pilot was able to safely land close by, at the 10th hole of Whirlpool Golf Course. No one was injured.
Then in September 1992, two tourist helicopters — one Canadian, one American — collided in the air about 100 metres west of the Horseshoe Falls. Both were operated by experienced pilots with military service.
The American helicopter dropped instantly, landing near the Incline Railway and killing the pilot and three passengers. The Canadian copter with four passengers landed safely in a Marineland parking lot.
A Canadian Transport Safety Board investigation later ruled neither pilot was to blame because neither saw the other in time to avoid the collision.
Since then, rules have restricted the number of vehicles that can fly below the 3,500-foot level.
“That’s to prevent people from wandering in there and running into each other,” Walsh said.
Tourist helicopters fly at about 2,900 feet on a continuous route, without hovering.