Kent Couch is an American cluster balloonist who drew international interest for his flights across the state of

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

Cluster balloon flights

Couch, a 47-year-old gas station owner, first flew in July 2007 riding a lawnchair elevated by 105 large

helium balloon A gas balloon is a balloon that rises and floats in the air because it is filled with a gas lighter than air (such as helium or hydrogen). When not in flight, it is tethered to prevent it from flying away and is sealed at the bottom to prevent t ...

s. Using amateur instruments to measure altitude and speed, a

GPS The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a satellite-based hyperbolic navigation system owned by the United States Space Force and operated by Mission Delta 31. It is one of the global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) that provide geol ...

device to track his location, and 5 gallons (19 litres) of water for ballast, he controlled his descent by releasing water. The flight began in

Bend, Oregon Bend is a city in central Oregon and the county seat of Deschutes County, Oregon, Deschutes County, Oregon, United States. It is located to the east of the Cascade Range, on the Deschutes River. The site became known by pioneers as a ford (cros ...

and ended in Union, short of Couch's goal of reaching

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

. Couch began another flight at dawn on Saturday, July 5, 2008. That afternoon he successfully crossed the desert border, landing near

Cambridge, Idaho Cambridge is a city in Washington County, Idaho, United States. The population was 335 at the 2020 census, up from 328 at the 2010 census. It is the second-largest city in the county, behind the significantly larger Weiser, the county seat. G ...

.Kent Couch flies to Idaho with some balloons, a garden chair and a 'big dream' - Telegraph
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References

External links

CNN Article - "Man flies 193 miles in lawn chair"

Official Kent Couch website
* - a 2003 Australian film with a similar storyline {{DEFAULTSORT:Couch, Kent American balloonists 1959 births Living people People from Bend, Oregon Balloon flight record holders American aviation record holders

Cluster balloon flights

See also

References

External links