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Man Trying To Fly Across the Atlantic On Helium Balloons

Posted by samzenpus on from the what-could-possibly-go-wrong dept.

coondoggie writes "f you've ever wondered if you could fly just by holding onto a bunch of helium balloons over your head, well then you might understand where Accenture IT Technical Projects Manager Jonathan Trappe is coming from. Trappe today set out today from Caribou, Maine to cross 2,500 miles of Atlantic Ocean using 370 helium balloons slung under a small gondola. According to a DailyMail.com story, Trappe is relying on state-of-the-art weather data from the meteorologist who advised Felix Baumgartner on his record-breaking skydive from the stratosphere last year. The latest weather reports before the launch suggested winds would take Trappe to western Europe, though the exact destination would be hard to predict." Update: 09/13 14:08 GMT by S : The attempt is already over and unsuccessful. Trappe landed safely in Newfoundland, saying he was having trouble controlling the balloons.

7 of 92 comments (clear)

  1. On helium balloons? by chrism238 · · Score: 5, Funny

    I'm sceptical; I think you could do it on LSD, but helium would just give you that floating feeling.

  2. Slung UNDER? by macraig · · Score: 4, Funny

    Wait, the balloons are slung UNDER the gondola? Is this story from another multiverse where the rules ain't the same.

    In any case, with 370 dangling sacks that's a really well slung dude.

  3. You can follow his trip on Facebook by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I can't though, because like any responsible human being, I block Facebook at the DNS level. FFS people, if you make Facebook the new web, I give up all faith I had left in humanity.

  4. There's an award for that by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

    I hope he does better than this guy.

  5. Yeah, nice move Accenture... by Rosco+P.+Coltrane · · Score: 3, Insightful

    So this guys is wasting one of humankind's most precious resource on a useless stunt to promote his company. That's real slick, that.

    Note to self: never do business with Accenture.

    --
    "A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
    1. Re:Yeah, nice move Accenture... by Goaway · · Score: 3, Interesting

      If you believe a word the Daily Mail says, you're a fool.

      http://www.theguardian.com/science/shortcuts/2012/dec/11/should-we-ban-helium-balloons

  6. Well, that didn't work out well... by rootrot · · Score: 3, Informative

    http://www.chron.com/news/us/article/Man-using-cluster-balloons-lands-in-Newfoundland-4811559.php