User:Sengkang/Sketchpad/DHL Balloon
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The DHL Balloon is a giant helium balloon, located on Tan Quee Lan Street in the Downtown Core of Singapore. Sited next to the New 7th Storey Hotel and near Bugis MRT Station, the distinctive red and yellow commercial passenger balloon is the world's largest tethered helium balloon.[1]
Contents |
[edit] History
Launched at a cost of S$2.5 million, the DHL Balloon was a joint venture by Aerophile Balloon Singapore Pte Ltd and Vertical Adventure Pte Ltd, and took one year to plan.[1] The project was sponsored by global courier, freight and logistics company DHL, for which it gets exclusive advertising space on the balloon. The business partners involved in the project worked with the Urban Redevelopment Authority, Singapore Land Authority and Singapore Tourism Board to allow public advertising on the balloon, and arrange for the lease for the site.[2]
On 19 April 2006, 40 crew took 12 hours to inflate the French-made balloon, which took its first passengers in May 2006. The DHL Balloon is operated by Singapore Ducktours, a Singapore company which also offers city tours on its amphibious vehicles. As of September 2007, more than 150,000 people have ridden on the DHL Balloon, 70% of whom are tourists. Up to 1,000 people ride the balloon on weekends. Its ridership is the highest among all of Aerophile's balloons.[1]
[edit] Specifications and features
The DHL Balloon measures 22 metres in diameter, and is filled with 6,500 cubic metres of helium. Being the world's largest tethered helium balloon, there are only 15 like it around the world. Other cities which have it include Paris and Hong Kong.
As the balloon is anchored to the ground with a metal cable, it only goes up and down, to a maximum height of 150 metres, or around 40 storeys. It can fit a maximum of 29 passengers in its gondola. Passengers pay S$23 for a ten-minute ride on the DHL Balloon, which offers passengers a bird's eye view of Singapore's Central Area, including the central business district, Marina Bay, Orchard Road and Little India, and as far as Indonesia and Malaysia.
The DHL Balloon is operated by a pilot inside the balloon. It uses a winch system which controls take-off and landing. As a safety measure, the balloon is not flown when there is lightning, rain, or when the wind speed exceeds five knots on the ground, as measured by an anemometer, on location. The crew of six pilots, who work in rotation with one pilot working at any one time, also conducts routine checks daily, weekly and every three months on the balloon and its equipment. The helium is replenished every four to six months, and Aerophile engineers visits the balloon every year to conduct an inspection.[3]
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b c Arthur Lee. "Up, up and away", The Business Times, 20 April 2006.
- ^ Prior to this project, large advertisements in public areas were not allowed in Singapore: Chua Mui Hoong. "Wanted in public service: Guts, gumption and risk-taking", The Straits Times, 17 November 2006.
- ^ Teo Cheng Wee. "No hot air in balloon", The Sunday Times, 2 September 2007, p. L5.
[edit] References
- Teo Cheng Wee. "Float or Fly?: DHL Balloon owners say they don't view Singapore Flyer as a competitor", The Sunday Times, 2 September 2007, p. L5.
