BALLOON FIESTA
The skyline of Agra was dotted with colourful hot air balloons that took off from near the banks of Yamuna at Hathi Ghat here on Saturday morning.
Fourteen balloons from different countries were part of the Taj Hot Air Balloon Festival that kick started on Saturday.
Indian balloon, VT Goa, was the first one to go up and was soon followed by others. Vehicles reached Hathi Ghat of Yamuna in wee hours of Saturday and drove right up to the river bank, the venue chosen for the launch of the hot air balloon festival.
The balloons moved with the flow of the wind as they were tracked and followed by their respective on-ground teams.
Deputy director of tourism department of UP, Avinash Mishra, was in the city on Saturday to participate in the opening day of the fest and flew in one of the balloons.
Speaking to HT, Sayantan Sinha from the media team of the organisers, Sky Waltz, said, “In all 14 balloons flew. These were from different countries including the USA, the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, Sri Lanka and India.” Sky Waltz is hosting the festival in collaboration with Department of Tourism, Uttar Pradesh. Fog in the early part of day prevented clear view of the city skyline.
Pilots had flown in from different parts of the world to take part in the event. They informed HT about the various technicalities of hot air ballooning.
“We mostly use propane as gas fuel which is sometimes mixed with butane to propel the balloon,” informed Lindy Roberts from Canberra, Australia. A nurse by profession, Lindy was there assisting her husband, Ewan Roberts, who had been flying as a pilot for the past 22 years.