The European Museum of Balloons and Airships offers an interesting History of Ballooning, as well as photos of some very unusual Special Shape Balloons. Now you'd better think about it when you say, "...when elephants can fly!"
For everything you ever wanted to know about where to hang glide, stop by Alec Proudfoot's WWW Hang Gliding Sites Guide. Alec has a clickable world map with links to hang gliding sites around the globe.
If you ever wanted a bird's eye view of the Italian Alps, the Centro Studi del Volo a Vela Alpino (Alpine Soaring Research Center in Calcinate, Italy) offers two spectacular photos by Giancarlo Bresciani. Image 1, In volo su Pelvoux (48Kb), and Image 4, In roccolo (35Kb), are definitely worth a look!
Ever had the urge to jump out of a perfectly good airplane, but never had any training? Not to worry! Tandem Skydive in Nelson, New Zealand, offers a five- minute orientation, then a jump with one of their team members. According to their site, "The freefall feels like lying on a nice soft cushion of air. Once you have made a skydive you will know 'why the birds sing.' "
As the Skydive! Archive says, "If riding in an airplane is flying, then riding in a boat is swimming. If you want to experience the element, get out of the vehicle." For those wanting to try the sport, the Sky Diving Archive begins by offering answers to the question of How to Get Started.
Satchmo's Skydiving Page kind of rambles, maybe from too much thin air, but has some great photos! Be sure to see Brent Finley's Car in the Sky. Now you will understand why I think these guys are Nuts!
Fédération Aéronautique Internationale is sponsoring the 1st World Air Games to be held in Turkey in September of this year. "The World Air Games are a multi-airsport event of the highest level, equivalent to the Olympic Games of the air," they say. Their Links to Aviation Sites page contains hours of worthwhile exploration.
Everyone is talking about it: sky surfing! An email friend of mine in New Zealand asked one day if I had seen "those crazy people on ESPN2?!" It seems this relatively new sport has a rapidly growing audience, and for adrenaline junkies, it's a natural. To find out what all the hoopla is about, take a look at the SSI Pro Tour: Skysurfing and Freeflying, and meet those crazy people. Begin with Way Cool! But What is It? for a good overview of what the sport and competition are like.
Want some weekend fun? Join the helicopter jockeys of HeliFun as they jaunt around the Greek countryside in search of good food and great views.
"The Busiest Aviation Hub in Cyberspace" certainly must be Landings. With search engines and database links about everything in the air, it is a very comprehensive site. If your interests are aerobatics, images, or military aircraft, it's in there!
Want to buy a plane? Take a look at the AirShow where you can Hear the Engine and almost kick the tires!
For ultimate thrill seekers, how about flying into the eye of a hurricane with the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron, known as the Hurricane Hunters of the Air Force Reserve? Stationed at Kessler Air Force Base in Mississippi, it is the responsibility of these incredible pilots to fly right into the eye of a hurricane and transmit data back to the National Hurricane Center. Their Cyberflight into the Eye is a fascinating trip.
If you ever thought flying was dizzying, check out the Northern Lights Aerobatic Team. Rick Radell and Peter Ward have posted some great photos on the Performance Page. If you would like to hire an aerobatic team, Firebird Aerobatics Ltd. from England is available.
If you prefer a little faster plane, try the Royal Air Force Red Arrows Hawk Ground Attack and Trainer Aircraft. With Team Profiles, a Photo Gallery that takes you right into the cockpit, and a Brief History, you can get a good idea of what aerobatics are all about.
Looking for something with a little more, shall we say, intimidation factor? How about the aircraft of Northrop Grumman? When these guys talk about multimedia "Killer Content," they mean it with their B-2 Spirit Web Site!
No trip into the wild blue can stop without a visit to NASA's Office of Space Flight. For adventurers with extraterrestrial desires, you can jump to NASA's Shuttle Web, see what's happening on the Space Station Mir, or watch the countdown to the launch of the International Space Station later this year. To see how far you can see, take a look at NASA's Hubble Space Telescope Photo Gallery for some truly spectacular images.
One more library worthy of a visit is the Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Image & Information Archives: "Managed for NASA by the California Institute of Technology, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory is the lead U.S. center for robotic exploration of the solar system. JPL spacecraft have visited all known planets except Pluto (a Pluto mission is currently under study for the late 1990s)."
