Coupe Aéronautique Gordon Bennett
The Coupe Aéronautique Gordon Bennett, the FAI World Long Distance Gas Balloon Championship, is the oldest and most prestigious event in aviation and the ultimate challenge for the pilots. It is a story full of adventure, skill, courage, survival and luck. The goal is simple: to fly the furthest non-stop distance from the launch site.
The international competition was initiated by adventurer and newspaper tycoon James Gordon Bennett Jr. in 1906, when 16 balloons launched from the Tuileries Gardens in Paris, France. Little did the crowd of 200,000 spectators know that this race was to continue throughout the 20th century. The winning team brings the competition to their country.
The international balloon competition was initiated by adventurer and newspaper tycoon Gordon Bennett in 1906, when 16 balloons launched from the Tuileries Gardens in Paris, France. Little did the crowd of 200,000 spectators know that this race was to continue throughout the 20th century.
These web pages are dedicated to the courageous men and women who have and continue to challenge the skies in this incredible event. Within these pages is the history of this great event, from a list of all race participants and winners to the narrative supplied from a book by Ulrich Hohmann Sr. of Germany.
It is a story full of adventure, skill, courage survival and luck.
It is the story of the Coupe Aéronautique Gordon Bennett.
