| 08/02/02 -- Today
Rochester Balloon Company, LLC announces the acquisition of another balloon
system for the company fleet. The new balloon system is an Aerostar RX-8 S57A
with a 90,000 cubic ft. size envelope. The balloon is patterned in a twisted
rainbow pattern with bright multicolored vertical patterns. It is very
vibrant and beautiful when viewed from any angle. This balloon was named "Twisted Sister"
by it's previous owners and has been located in Concord, North Carolina. The
balloon was built in 1996 and has been well cared for and flown gently over
the past 6 years. The balloon was manufactured in Sioux Falls, SD by
Aerostar as our other balloons have been. The basket
is an Aerostar 'Classic II' made with sewn wicker and leather trim marked
with bright colored trim and black cordura accenting. There
are two complete redundant burner systems on board, each capable of 18
million BTU's/hour. There are also three 18 gal propane tanks, instruments
and many additional accessories. This balloon also has a unique feature
called 'rotators'. In some of the pictures you can see an area of white load
tapes spaced close together. This is the rotator section. It allows the
pilot to be able to turn the balloon either clockwise or counter clockwise
by pulling on ropes in the basket. This can be used for banner flying or
when landing to turn the balloon in the correct direction. It does not allow
us to steer the balloon any different.
After a long road trip to North Carolina the RBC team then
took the balloon to Sioux Falls, SD to have it's 'annual' inspection. This
was completed on 08/09 and we flew this balloon for the first time at
Kasson, MN on Friday 08/09/02.
The new balloon will be used for hot air balloon rides and promotions
in
the Rochester, MN area. With it's large capacity and envelope size we will be
able to carry up to 3 passengers during those warm Summer months. If you should see us flying be sure to stop and say
hello to the crew and passengers.
For additional information on rides and hot air balloon
promotions refer to the listings below.
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Last Updated
07/27/2009
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