Note on the Hot-Air Balloon at SydUni

Here is a further note on the hot-air balloon on the SydUni campus - hopefully of interest. Don will be able to tell us more. I was talking to an old Eng mate, who knew and worked (electronics company) with the leader of the Aerostat Society of Australia (Terry McCormack). With now further information, my mate and I were present at the first inflation and tethered flight in 1963 on St. John's College Oval.

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For those reading further and still awake, there are two links of interest with some nice photos and a video clip:

Into the wild blue yonder (SAM Nov 2010)
http://sydney.edu.au/alumni/sam/november2010/flight-technology.shtml

Early hot air ballooning in Australia
http://members.ozemail.com.au/~p0gwil/?
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Alternatively, just a few extracts of interest follow. See the links above for the full story.

In 1962 a few students at St John’s College developed a light-hearted interest in hot air balloons. Terry McCormack and Terry Golding were the main enthusiasts; others joined them. By each donating the equivalent of about $50 they were able to start the design and construction of a balloon large enough to lift one person. Made of Mylar polyester film, coated with vaporised aluminium, the shape was a simple sphere, 9.7m in diameter, with a tangential cone 13.4m high, with a volume of 509.7 cubic metres.

It was built in a cafeteria at Uni, the 28 lengths of delicate sheeting carefully stacked, then cut all at once by machine. Not much thicker than lolly wrapper, Mylar is incredibly difficult to tear – except from any exposed edges, where it displays frightening weakness. Finally, the gores were taped together, on both sides, using strong 5cm fibreglass reinforced tape.

In June 1963 they named it Archimedes and called themselves the Aerostat Society of Australia. The first test inflation was on the college grounds using an electric blower to lift the tethered balloon.

After that flight, the members organised a free – untethered – flight, which had to be well away from air traffic corridors at Parkes in western NSW. A crowd gathered to watch the intrepid young men prepare for the maiden flight. Beneath the balloon was a simple platform to support the pilot and a gas cylinder. Test pilot Terry McCormack steadied himself on the open platform but Archimedes, with its tiny burner, was unable to lift off. There was little to jettison: Terry had no helmet, so he relinquished his parachute and that produced enough lift. Initially the tiny balloon dropped into a gully, followed by the crowd of spectators, but the balloon kept going and after 15 minutes, had climbed to 610m and traveled almost 5kms. Finally, the balloon descended behind a hill and landed heavily, flipping the platform upside down, leaving Terry suspended from a rope. When anxious spectators eventually arrived at the site he was found to be okay. It was Saturday, 4 July 1963 and Terry had made the first free balloon flight in Australia in more than 40 years.

The sad coda follows.

In Nov 1975, near Wagga in NSW, Terry was flying in his balloon  "New Endeavour". He and his passenger, were cruising low, over farming country.  It was a hot calm afternoon, when a willy-willy (whirl wind) struck. It lifted them a few hundred feet, spinning the envelope, and causing it to collapse. The balloon crashed and burnt. Terry died from the impact. He was 36 years old, and left a wife, Cherry. Months later, their son was born. His passenger Tony Hayes, 30, used his emergency parachute, but as they were too low, he also died.

--TonyP