From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta
Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta
Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta loon pilot, Mr. Sung Kee Paik, and British Airways Gen-
eral Manager, Mr. John Emery, and the German aviation
enthusiast Max Motschmann engineered the Philippine
International hot air balloon festival to help jumpstart
the local economy and spirit of the Central Luzon region
with the commitment of developing hot air ballooning as
an aviation sport in the country and making the Philip-
pines one of the leading sports aviation and travel desti-
nations in the Asia Pacific region. The 1994 event origi-
nally organized by the Department of Tourism (DOT), the
Hot Air Balloon Club, and British Airways initially began
with 21 balloon pilots from 10 countries and one entry
Balloons were inflated during its 15th edition
from the Philippines. The success of the festival in 1994
Date(s) Every 2nd week of February brought about an increase in the number of participants
Location(s) Clark Freeport Zone, Angeles City, in 1995 to 27 balloons including a basketless one-man
Philippines balloon and two entries from the Philippines. The 1995
festival also saw the introduction of ultra light planes to
Years active 1994 - Present
the events.
Inaugurated 1994
Attendance approx. 60,000
1996-1998
By 1996 responsibility of the event was transferred from
Genre hot air balloon festival
the Department of Tourism to Air Ads, Inc. under the
Website http://www.philballoonfest.net/ watchful eyes of Captain Joy Roa who is also an avid li-
censed balloon pilot. Between 1996 and 1998, the grow-
The Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta is an ing popularity of the festival was expanded to include
annual event that occurs between January and February other aero-sports activities such as sky diving, paraglid-
at the Omni Aviation Complex in Clark Field, Angeles Ci- ing, motorized hang gliding, remote controlled model
ty, Pampanga. It features multicolored hot air balloons aircraft (aero modelers), and kite flying. Aerobatic stunts
with more than a hundred balloon pilots from around the and precision maneuvers courtesy of the Blue Diamonds
world. This three to four day hot air balloon event is the and later the Red Aces of the Philippine Air Force became
biggest aviation sports event in the Philippines. a regular attraction of the festival.[2]
The festival also features a number of events in sky-
diving, flag jumps, micro light and rocketry demonstra- 1999-2003
tions, small plane fly-bys and fly-ins, remote-control air- Financial difficulties in 1999 led to the cancellation of
plane and helicopter flying exhibitions, freestyle aero- the festival, but saw a resurgence in 2000 with 12 bal-
batics, precision maneuvers, light airplane balloon burst- loons and 18 light planes from Thailand, Japan and Sin-
ing, ultra-light flying formation and bomb dropping, gapore, all participating in an air rally which has become
kite-making and choreographed kite-flying, hi-start a regular component of the festivities. 2003 saw a change
launch gliding, pylon racing, banner towing, aero-mod- in the traditional ballooning format. Specially designed
eling symposium and races between ultra lights and mo- balloons in the shape of a flying newspaper from Korea
torcycles.[1] An estimated 60,000 visitors locally and from and a large dog from Japan made their debut over the
around the world come in to see this event. Pampanga skyline. Balloon participation from Malaysia,
Korea, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom, Sweden,
History Holland, Czechoslovakia, and the Netherlands drew
crowds from around the world.
1994/1995
2004-Present
In 1994, three years after the devastating effects of the
Currently, the Philippine International Hot Air Balloon
G.Mount Pinatubo eruption, Tourism Secretary Mina Ga-
Festival continues to be a popular international sports
bor together with Korean businessman and hot-air bal-
1
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta
See also
• Hot air balloon festivals
External links
• Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta
Official site
• 12th PIHABF Home Page, Clark Air Base, Angeles
City, Pampanga, Philippines
• Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta 2010
Schedule
• Hot Air Balloon Fiesta at Clark Freeport Zone at WN
Night glow display: Hot Air Balloon Festival in Clark Freeport
• Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta 2012
Zone, Pampanga
• gmanews.tv/video, 1st Pinoy-made hot-air ballon
shown off in Pampanga - 29 January 2008 (in
aviation event. The 2006 festival featured 30 multicol- Filipino)
ored hot air balloons and more than a hundred balloon
pilots from Finland, Sweden, the Netherlands, Germany,
the Czech Republic, the Slovak Republic, Hungary, the References
United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, Japan, Korea, [1] ^ Manila Times. Hot Air Balloon Fiesta soars at Clark.
Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines. It also Retrieved on February 7, 2007.
drew an approximated 60,000 visitors to the event.[1] [2] Miko Santos Asian Journal Online. Hot Air Balloons
Grace Pampanga’s Sky. Retrieved on February 7,
2007.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/in-
dex.php?title=Philippine_International_Hot_Air_Balloon_Fiesta&oldid=472220372"
Categories:
• Balloon festivals
• Festivals in Pampanga
• Angeles, Philippines
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