Safety and Weather Conditions

If the weather conditions are not safe for flying, we won’t fly. Simple as that.

Every balloon flight is unique in regards to the weather conditions on the day. All commercial hot air balloon pilots in Australia must pass exams covering meteorology, navigation and air law. This gives our pilots all the skills necessary to decide whether the conditions are safe for flying.

The factors that our pilots consider when making a decision to fly include, but are not limited to:

• Surface wind – speed and direction
• Upper winds – speed and direction
• Temperature – both on the ground and aloft
• Cloud cover and height of cloud base
• Topography and its effect on temperature
• The possibility of fog
• The likelihood of changes in conditions
• Classifications of airspace in the area
• Clearance from Air Traffic Control
• Likely terrain and weather conditions at potential landing sites

If any of these factors indicates a safety risk, our pilot will decide not to fly. Simple as that.

Safety Regulations

The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) governs all the aviation aspects of commercial hot air ballooning in Australia and applies some of the toughest regulations in the world.

Picture This Ballooning operates under CASA’s approval with Air Operators Certificate (AOC) VT565255-05.

The rules that apply to any small passenger airline also apply to us. CASA regularly audits all AOC holders and their Operations Manuals. All our pilots hold licenses with CASA and are subject to regular flight reviews.

Aircraft Airworthiness

The same stringent regulations that apply to our operation also apply to the airworthiness of our aircraft.

All our hot air balloons are subject to regular maintenance inspections. A licensed Maintenance Authority holder or the Manufacturer carries out all repairs and maintenance. Our pilot Peter Wright is the holder of Maintenance Authority A568115 and has received extensive training through CASA and Kavanagh Balloons in Sydney. All our balloons are manufactured by Kavanagh Balloons in Sydney and Cameron Balloons in the UK. Both manufacturers are widely regarded as being amongst the best in the world.

Our pilots' safety standards

We thoroughly examine our pilots for their knowledge, skill, experience and safety records. We have a commitment to using the best pilots from Australia and around the world. All our pilots have many hours of flight time in hot air balloons, far in excess of the industry standard.

Our Philosophy on Safety

At Picture This Ballooning our number one priority is safety; of our passengers, of our pilots, of our crew and of all those involved in creating the experience of flight. Safety is the core of our decision making process, from the purchase of new equipment to the assessment of flight conditions.

Hot air ballooning is widely regarded as the safest form of aviation. Balloons only fly in favourable weather conditions and the legislation under which balloons operate in Australia is amongst the most stringent in the world.

We only operate the most modern and safe equipment, including high tech burners imported from the UK.

Picture This Ballooning maintains a flawless safety record since its inception in 1996 and is committed to keeping it that way.