On 9th July in 1967, the first UK modern hot air balloon, the Bristol Belle, took her maiden flight at Weston-on-the-Green, Oxon.
After becoming inspired by American engineer Ed Yost’s modern hot air balloon via a copy of National Geographic magazine, Don Cameron, along with a team of Bristol Gliding Club friends, came up with the idea to create the Bristol Belle.
After previously building a series of hot air balloons, Malcolm Brighton was tasked with her design and build, and following Belle’s maiden flight, Don’s new hobby soon turned into the full-time business of Cameron Balloons, creating hot air balloons and fabric engineering projects for customers across the globe.
Seen here having a recent check-over by Don at Cameron Balloons, they’re happy to announce that Belle (along with her original burner – see here) will be on display at Aerospace Bristol this summer as part of our collaborative ‘Look Up!’ exhibition, celebrating Bristol’s rich ballooning history!
Pathe News have an interesting video of a 1968 Bristol Belle flight. See the Bristol Belle video on YouTube HERE.
https://aerospacebristol.org/look-up
#CameronBalloons #TeamCameron #LookUp