Dépêches

Aérophile’s New Giant Tethered Balloon for Walt Disney World Resort Takes to the Air!

Dépèche transmise le 17 avril 2009 par Business Wire

Aérophile’s New Giant Tethered Balloon for Walt Disney World Resort Takes to the Air!

PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--TUESDAY, April 21^st at 9:00am (EST):

Aérophile will celebrate its newest venture as the Characters in Flight Operated by Aérophile balloon in Downtown Disney enjoys its grand opening!

Jérôme Giacomoni, president and co-founder of Aérophile,

along with the balloon’s ground crew and pilot cordially invite you to attend

the official inauguration of Characters in Flight Operated by Aérophile.

Come witness, cameras in hand, this breathtaking moment at Downtown Disney’s West Side!

Aérophile S.A., the new tethered balloon’s inventor and manufacturer, has given guests of Downtown Disney Area in Lake Buena Vista, Florida a thrilling vantage point from which to admire the sprawling Disney sites. Boasting an unparalleled 360-degree view up to 10 miles on a clear day, the Characters in Flight Operated by Aérophile balloon rises up to 400 feet in the air and can carry up to 30 passengers in its gondola, including the pilot, on each flight (subject to weather conditions).

The giant tethered balloon measures 105 feet in height, has a circumference of 240 feet, a 72-foot diameter, and an impressive volume of 210,000 cubic feet. Aérophile designed its quick mooring system and star-shaped landing platform especially for Downtown Disney.

The world leader in tethered balloons, Aérophile S.A. is proud to unveil the latest incarnation of the Aero 30 NG Model, one of the company’s 50 systems sold or operated in 25 countries around the world. A veritable gem of machinery, the Aero 30 NG operates silently and is 100% pollution-free!

Photos available upon request.

ABOUT AÉROPHILE, S.A.

Founded in 1993 by two 25-year-old French engineers, Matthieu Gobbi and Jérôme Giacomoni, Aérophile S.A. reinvented the tethered gas balloon and became the world leader in tethered gas balloons through the development of three flagship products: 1) the AERO 30 NG (since 1994) a large tethered balloon that can lift 30 passengers up to 500 feet every 10 minutes with 50 balloons sold in more than 25 countries in cities including Paris, Berlin, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Dubaï, 2) the AERO2 (since 2000), a mobile balloon designed for 2 passengers, and 3) the AEROPHARE (since 2007), the first balloon capable of flying up to 130 feet with 12 passengers in up to 50 mph winds. All products can be used as a totem, a billboard, or an amusement ride.

The tethered balloon is a highly specialized aerostat that requires strict manufacturing processes and rigorous operating practices. Not only the manufacturer, Aérophile S.A. is also the successful operator of its balloons. Aérophile Orlando LLC now operates the Characters in Flight Operated by Aérophile balloon in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, as of April 2009.

Aérophile S.A.'s personnel is comprised of forty staff members, including some twenty pilots and technicians qualified to undertake the installation, training, and commissioning of all systems.

In addition to the newly installed balloon in Downtown Disney, two other Aérophile systems are currently operating on American soil in the state of California, at Great Park in Irvine and at Wild Animal Park in San Diego, and three others are scheduled to be installed in various locations across the United States later this year. At Disneyland Resort in Paris, Aérophile S.A. has been successfully operating a similar Aérophile system since April 2005, much to the delight of its estimated 360,000 passengers to date.