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HThis shows that in 1999, the world’s first non-stop flight was impressive. The pilots were not alone; The race around the world was a 90-year-old equivalent of a multi-billion dollar race, and Tycoons Richard Branson and Steve Fossett are also chasing that dream. It might be fun to tell the story, but documentary producer John Dower is focused the successful flight of the Swiss explorer Bertrand Piccard and the Englishman Brian Joneswho made their successful 25,000-mile journey through the Breitling Orbiter 3.
It was Piccard’s third attempt. The first was a disaster, when Piccard dropped his balloon in the Mediterranean just a few hours later: “I was completely embarrassed,” he recalls. He didn’t have the deep pockets of Branson or Fossett, but he was born into a family of inventors and explorers; in 1931 his grandfather was the first person to reach the stratosphere, in a hydrogen balloon. Piccard is charismatic and driven, and the film revolves around the question of his own ego. He insisted that the man who had done the work would not let him down. Everyone who is interviewed here is of very good character, and they do not want to gossip, about each other or their competitors, which makes this a very respectful document.
Things heated up with Piccard’s third and winningest outing in March 1999, with co-driver Brian Jones. A few months before departure, Branson’s latest effort landed in the Pacific near Hawaii (“one of the best Christmas gifts,” says Piccard). It was touch and go to Breitling Orbiter 3. He lost satellite communication with mission control for two days and, after a heater failure caused problems with the oxygen supply, Jones found Piccard collapsed on his desk. Their balloon finally came down to Earth in the Egyptian desert after 19 days, 21 hours and 55 minutes. It’s an amazing story – although those involved may have said it many times over the years, they’ve lost their joy; this may be for aviation enthusiasts only.
