Look! It’s a ball!
Uncle B calls over his shoulder, “there’s a ball on flightradar24.” And I’m like “?” Sure enough, there’s a little round icon on the map and the site lists the aircraft type as “ball”.
Obviously, a hot air balloon of some kind. Probably unmanned, judging from the picture. Set out from Burghausen and it’s going about 20 mph, so it’s been up there a while.
Pink Aviation is a military aircraft spares website, so probably not them. Grok tells me there’s a helicopter training service in Austria called Pink Aviation. Probably not them.
I got Grok baffled on this one. If that’s the actual balloon in the picture, I see no place for gear or propulsion, though it must at least have a transponder. That’s roughly the way the wind is blowing today. Just a giant lost balloon?
Uncle B writes to add:
Apparently: “The STU1000 is a Worner Gas Balloon model, specifically the Worner Gas Balloon NL-1000/STU. It is used by Pink Aviation and can be tracked on Flightradar24.”
For some strange reason it is currently parked at an RAF base in Cambridgeshire. I think we can safely discount little green men, though I do hope the RAF hasn’t decided to buy them for interceptor duties. At a stately 20mph you’d be better off with tea leaves than radar.
Posted: March 18th, 2025 under personal.
Comments: 9
Comments
Comment from Uncle Al
Time: March 18, 2025, 5:52 pm
If we’re to go by that photo, it looks more like a gas balloon. What’s really odd is it looks like it has a rigid skin. Maybe it’s space aliens again. 👽
Comment from Deborah HH
Time: March 18, 2025, 6:18 pm
Maybe one of those “weather” balloons (cough cough) like the one from China that came drifting over North America a few years ago.
Comment from QuasiModo
Time: March 18, 2025, 7:20 pm
It’s an ‘Orb’…ran out of juice or something.
Comment from S. Weasel
Time: March 18, 2025, 8:34 pm
Update on the main post by Uncle B. It wouldn’t let him post as a comment! No, not the usual security bollocks, a different message (that it couldn’t find the file he was trying to reply to).
If you’re having this problem, please alert me on stoaty@sweasel.com.
Comment from ExpressoBold Pureblood
Time: March 18, 2025, 8:52 pm
Didn’t they send up hot air balloons to provide a platform for battlefield reconnaissance, Great War Edition?
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N.B.
No problems on posting the comment.
Comment from Durnedyankee
Time: March 18, 2025, 9:11 pm
Got it, it looks like a jellyfish.
I wonder if that’s deliberate because of something they discovered about jellyfish.
Cause I’m not saying they’re aliens, but 👽
Comment from Durnedyankee
Time: March 18, 2025, 10:26 pm
Woo hoo! The astronauts are back on the earth!
Comment from MikeInFairfax
Time: March 19, 2025, 5:26 am
Used to be a couple dozen of them roaming various place around the globe several years back. They were Google’s Project Loon to bring internet to very rural places. Usually flew around 60,000 ft. altitude, way above air traffic. Maybe Pinky got some hand-me-downs.
Comment from Some Vegetable
Time: March 19, 2025, 12:54 pm
Those Rover Orbs from “The Prisoner” had to get jobs after the series ended, just like everybody else.
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