World Record Balloon Flight From Japan to North America
The Celestial Eagle Flight Team consists of two Albuquerque balloon pilots, Troy Bradley and Peter Cuneo.
Troy Bradley, Pilot
At
43, Troy has spent his lifetime in the air. Soloing at age 14, he has logged
more than 4,600 hours aloft, and has over 50 world ballooning records to
his credit.
His many awards include the highest honor placed on balloonists worldwide, the Montgolfiere Diploma, for exceptional achievement in ballooning. He is the first person in history to set records in gas, hot air, and Roziere balloons. (Roziere balloons are hybrid balloons that use both hot air and helium.)
In 1992, he made the first US to Africa balloon flight and set the absolute duration record (6 days) for all types of balloons. In 2002, Troy broke the oldest standing aviation record flying a very tiny gas balloon over 1,200 miles. The previous record of 500 miles stood for 80 years.
Troy owns and operates a commercial balloon ride company called "Skyspan Adventures", and lives with his wife, Tami and their two children in Albuquerque, NM. For more information about Troy Bradley and his accomplishments, please visit his web site: http://www.SkyspanAdventures.com.
Peter Cuneo, Pilot
Peter is a highly accomplished hot air and gas balloon pilot. He earned
his hot air pilot certificate in 1989, and a gas rating in 1995. Outside
of the United States, he has flown in Canada, France, Germany, Poland,
Belgium, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Peru.
He has participated in many long distance gas balloon races in the United States and Europe. In 2001, with Barbara Fricke, he won the prestigious America’s Challenge balloon race. On that flight they left Albuquerque, New Mexico and landed 58 hours later and 2096 km downwind.
In 1998, he made the first flight to employ in-flight liquid helium flight control technology, with fellow balloonist Julian Nott.
For the last 7 years Peter has been the co-editor of the Balloon Federation of America’s Gas Division Newsletter. He has also constructed two balloons, one gas and one hot air.
Support Team
Tim Baggett, Flight Tracking
Tim
Baggett became involved in ballooning in 1995. After moving to
Austin the following year, Tim helped a local pilot construct three
hot air and gas balloons. Since 2001, he has been actively involved in
gas ballooning, volunteering in the command center for the America's
Challenge and the Gordon Bennett races, as well as other events. An
amateur radio operator since 1984, Tim began using computers and radio
technology to track balloon long distance and high altitude flights in
2000. He has continued to develop his flight tracking system as an aid
to flight teams in the United States and abroad. When not ballooning,
Tim is an electrical engineer who thinks in binary for a small
semiconductor company in Austin, Texas.
Ray Bair, NAA Observer
Ray will be responsible for the official documentation of the flight and
preparation of materials necessary for record homologation. Ray has been
involved in ballooning since the late 1970’s; he was employed by
Sandia National Laboratories and retired as a Technical Director after
31 years. Ray is commercially rated for both hot air and gas balloons.
He is an active flight instructor and has served as a Designated Pilot
Examiner and Aviation Safety Counselor for the FAA since 1993.
Lou Billones, Meteorologist
Chief Meteorologist for
four around-the-world by balloon attempts, a successful crossing of the
Pacific Ocean and three successful crossings of the Atlantic by balloons,
exclusive weather forecasting support to over 75 internationally promulgated
record breaking hot air and gas balloon distance, altitude, and duration
flights; and consultations on balloon meteorology to National Geographic,
ABC's Night Line,
and the Discovery Channel. Lou Billones is also a hot air balloon pilot.
Tamara Bradley, Crew Member
Tonya Branaghan, Command Center Logistics
Tonya
handles event coordination for Cognitive Engineering Research Institute
(CERI) in Mesa, Arizona which is the site of Celestial Eagle's
Command Center. Tonya recently relocated from the Midwest with her family.
Her favorite part of life in Arizona is the abundance of winter sunshine!
Tim Cole, Flight Director
Tim Cole has served in one capacity or another with United States around-the-world
ballooning attempts since 1981. He flew as co-pilot with Steve Fossett
in the 1994 record-setting transatlantic balloon flight, and served on
the team for Fossett's January 1997 attempt, which set absolute duration
and distance records, and for Fossett’s January 1998 attempt. As chief
engineer, Cole oversees the operational readiness of all systems, improvements
of systems and design changes. Cole is a holder of two world and 26 national
ballooning records, and was inducted into the Colorado Aviation Hall of
Fame. A 1991 duration record flight was cited by the National Aeronautics
Association as one of the top 10 flights of 1991. In 1995, Cole, along
with Dennis Brown, was awarded the Diploma Montgolfier, the highest award
given to a balloonist. He has been an agent with Farmers Insurance Group,
in Greeley, Colo., for the past 26 years.
Don Day, Jr., Meteorologist
Donald is a professional meteorologist, and owner of DayWeather,
Inc. a professional weather forecasting and consulting firm. Don is also a private
rated hot air balloon pilot. Don has been forecasting for balloon races,
record setting attempts, national and international competitions such as
the Gordon Bennett and America’s Challenge races. Donald has consulted
on several balloon and fixed wing record attempts across the Atlantic and
special balloon related projects in North and South America.
Barbara Fricke, Crew Member
Barbara has been involved with ballooning since 1982 when she first started
crewing. She, along with Peter Cuneo, purchased their first hot air balloon
in 1988. Barbara and Peter got into gas ballooning when Peter became part
of a group that was building their gas balloon. Shortly after that, she
and Peter met with Burt Padelt when they weaved their gas basket. Barbara
has been participating in gas balloon races since 1997, won the America's
Challenge race in 2001, and have placed second three times. She has also
flown in two Gordon Bennett races. She is looking forward to being a support
person for getting Troy and Peter off on their record attempt.
Taichi Horiguchi, Interpreter Saga
Sabu Ichiyoshi, Japanese Liaison
Sabu
is a gas and hot air balloon pilot, receiving his license in 1972 in Augsburg
Germany. He is a CIA delegate for Japan and International Secretary for
Balloon Federation of Japan. He was the chairman of the BFJ from 1982 -
1985, and currently operates Aeronauts
Inc. handling Cameron Balloons, ABC Lightships,
and DMR200 satellite transceivers from SatPro.
Whit Landvater, Webmaster
Whit
Landvater, originally from Albuquerque, has held a commercial balloon pilot
rating since 1981, and has flown balloons of all shapes and sizes throughout
most of the United States as well as in Canada, Belgium, Switzerland, and
Holland. He and his lovely wife Carrie currently own and operate Balloon
Nevada outside of Lake Tahoe. When he's not
flying balloons, he can be found pecking away at a computer at Area
Fiftyone.
Bert Padelt, Launchmaster
Bert Padelt built the Celestial Eagle balloon envelope, and is responsible
for the pre-launch assembly process. A championship
balloonist and launch expert, Padelt assisted in Steve Fossett's previous
around-the-world attempts. Involved with ballooning since age 12, he is
one of the very few persons in the United States who build high-tech gas
racing balloons, and his balloons have claimed world records. Padelt also
is a member of the board of directors of the Gas Balloon Division of the
Balloon Federation of America. His company, Best Aviation Services,
in Bally, Pa., builds, repairs and inspects both hot-air and gas balloons.
His nickname of 'Stogie' alludes
to the fact that he might be caught smoking a huge Cuban when no one is
looking.
Dr. Steven Shope, Command Center
Kim Vesely, Command Center Liaison
As
a former TV news reporter and freelance writer, Kim Vesely has covered
and written about many of gas ballooning's great "firsts" including the Double
Eagle II trans-Atlantic crossing, Double Eagle V trans-Pacific
crossing, and the Kitty Hawk flight across North America. She has
served as the Command Center liaison to the Albuquerque International Balloon
Fiesta media team for the past six America's Challenge gas balloon distance
races and the 2005 Coupe Gordon Bennett. Kim holds a commercial hot-air
balloon rating and is currently employed as Communications Officer for
the Rio Rancho (NM) Public Schools.
