Montgolfier brothers Montgolfier brothers Joseph-Michel Montgolfier (26 August 1740 – 26 June 1810) and Jacques-Étienne Montgolfier (6 January 1745 – 2 August 1799) were paper manufacturers from Annonay, in Ardèche, France best known as inventors of the Montgolfière-style hot air balloon, globe aérostatique. They launched the first piloted ascent, carrying Étienne. Joseph Michel also invented the self-acting hydraulic ram (1796), Jacques Étienne founded the first paper-making vocational school and the brothers invented a process to manufacture transparent paper. The Montgolfier brothers Joseph-Michel and Jacques-Étienne were born into a family of paper manufacturers founded in 1534 in Annonay, in Ardèche, France. Their parents
Alabama Jubilee Hot Air Balloon Classic Classic consists of three different balloon events: The Alabama Jubilee Hot-Air Balloon Classic, one of the oldest hot-air balloon races in the mid-South, started in Decatur, AL in 1978 with competition among 17 balloonists from Alabama, Kentucky, Ohio, Georgia, Mississippi and Louisiana. It was a showcase for the new Decatur balloon, one of the first to represent a city, and an event to kick off Alabama's tourism season. The Jubilee now draws about 60 pilots from 20 states for two days of friendly competition during the annual Memorial Day holiday weekend. The continued popularity of the Alabama Jubilee prompted the