Balloon pilot Graeme Day has over 2200 hours flight time and learnt to fly in France; the birthplace of ballooning. Having experienced the skies in several countries he came home to Australia to launch his very own company. Floating Images Hot Air Balloon Flights is operated by both Graeme and his wife.
My BT reporter Ashleigh Dwan had a chat to Graeme about his journey to balloon piloting, why he chose Ipswich, the safety regulations for ballooning and where he is heading in the future.
Q: Graeme, can you tell us a little about how and why you got involved in flying hot air balloons?
A: I got into ballooning through being at the right place at the right time.
In 1990 I was travelling overseas in the UK when a group of French students and I got stuck in a hikers hut for a few days. With not a lot to do besides talking, I was invited to visit Alsace in eastern France. I took up the opportunity and visited Strasbourg where some of the French students were studying. One of these students, Frederique, invited me to visit her family in the Valley of Munster.
During my time there, friends of Frederique asked if we wanted to go and assist with crewing their balloon flights. Having a love of outdoors and adventure, we went and crewed on a beautiful winters day with snow on the Vosges Mountains.
Needless to say driving with picturesque Alsatian villages along the valley floor, climbing up into the stunning Vosges Mountains with Alpine forests covered in snow and following hot air balloons, is a very infectious outdoor adventure. I decided to stay in the region and occasionally crewed for the balloon company. After a couple of months, I was offered full-time work as a crew member and crewed balloons for approximately 6 months. I learnt everything I could about balloons, crewing, the region and the French and Alsatian language.
Once again life had me at the right place and time. As people suddenly left the company the opportunity was given to become a pilot. In 1991 I began my training to fly balloons. During that time I had six weeks intensive French language training, whilst I was crewing and doing the jobs required by the balloon company. In the following year I received my French balloon licence, a proud moment at the age of 25.
I stayed and lived in France for six years, working in Alsace, the French Alps and numerous other French regions. It certainly was a fantastic way to discover and explore France from the air as well as meet so many passengers from all over the world.
In 1996 I came back home to Australia and found work on the Gold Coast. Four years later I decided to commence my own charter ballooning company based here in Ipswich.
Q: What’s involved in your flights, in terms of pricing etc?
A: Floating Images Hot Air Balloon Flights are Brisbane’s closest hot air balloon company, simply drive 30 minutes west of the Brisbane CBD.
You can experience a one hour city and country balloon flight over the heritage city of Ipswich, the Scenic Rim and Somerset region. Our program commences 45 minutes before sunrise and includes full flight commentary, a restaurant breakfast and commemorative flight certificate.
Up to March 31 adults fly at $325 and children at $275, from April 1 adults will be $330 and children $280.
Q: Your flights take place over Ipswich and the Scenic Rim region, what is it about this area that makes them so unique?
A: This regions geography and climate is ideal for ballooning. As the city and country combine we are offered a diverse and exciting range of natural beauty, intriguing history, old-style country charm and man made attractions to suit every style of traveller.
Set against the spectacular natural backdrop of the Great Dividing Range, the historic city of Ipswich is a great doorway to explore this region. It is Queensland’s oldest provincial city with many fine examples of turn-of-the-century architecture and classic “Queenslander” homes.
Floating Images provides passengers with a unique opportunity to explore this vast and beautiful region from the air.
Q: What inclined you to select Ipswich to set up the business?
A: My wife Ruth and I had done a lot of research and work to establish a balloon fiesta in Ipswich. We wanted to host the first world hot air balloon championships in the southern hemisphere in Ipswich. We were the only bidding team for Queensland and unfortunately the state government wouldn’t match the Victorian governments offer of $1.5 million.
Life moved on, we got married and decided that we would open our balloon business, raising our family here in Ipswich.
Q: Tell us about the safety checks for those who are worried about this?
A: Balloons are one of the safest and simplest forms of aviation travel. A balloon is an aircraft and meets the strict guidelines of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority in Australia. The pilot inspects the balloon every time we prepare and inflate the balloon. All Australian aircraft are mandatory inspected every 100 hours or 12 months whatever comes first.
Q: What is your favourite part of running your own business?
A: One of the special parts for me is sharing the flight and balloon experiences with my fellow passengers. I have flown people over three continents for the last 25 years and have met people from all walks of life. From those who save very hard and have had to forgo something to go on a balloon flight, to people wanting to tick it off their bucket list, to celebrities and aristocrats of Europe, I’ve had passengers from the age of three to 98.
Some flights have been for people who are blind, deaf or have intellectual disabilities. We’ve also had people who are terminally ill with only days or weeks to live. I flew a terminally ill 18-year-old Ipswich girl and her family and I can still see her face today, crying. She told her parents life wasn’t fair and that there is so much to see and explore in the world, something she would never get to do.
Q: Does it feel like you’ve been flying for that long?
A: Time has flown literally! I am very lucky to be able to do something that I am passionate about. I’m not sitting in an office and everyday is different. It brings new challenges with flying, running a tourism business and meeting people of all walks of life.
When I came to Ipswich I was the youngest tourism operator at 35, the first aviation and balloon tourism operator and am still Ipswich’s only aviation based operator. It doesn’t seem like 15 years have passed whilst operating and flying in Ipswich. Hopefully the next 20 will be just as much fun.
Q: Do you have plans to grow your business in the future?
A: We successfully grew our business for the first eight years, survived the GFC in 2008 and 2009 and battled through the 2011 and 2013 floods. We have kept our heads above water whilst the Australian economy was weak. In 2016, we flew more passengers than ever before and our business is growing strongly. Our focus has been the domestic market, offering a boutique ballooning experience with a professional but personalised service. In the future we will still be marketing the domestic 400km consumer market, but will slowly build relationships and networks to bring the international visitors from Brisbane to Ipswich to experience our tourism product. In the near future we are hoping to increase our ability to fly more passengers in a bigger basket as we have purchased one that holds 16 people. We just need a corporate sponsor for the envelope.
Hopefully in a few more years we are looking to have two to three balloons and pilots aloft flying passengers over this beautiful region. If all goes well, I will have another 20 years of flying balloons before I can retire. I’ll watch some more proposals, engagements or weddings or simply be a part of people enjoying their first balloon flight with Floating Images.
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