Hot air ballooning balloon accidents are rare, according to statistics from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). The first clearly recorded instance of a balloon carrying passengers used hot air to generate buoyancy and was built by the brothers Joseph-Michel and Jacques-Etienne Montgolfier in Annonay, France. After experimenting with unmanned balloons and flights with animals, the first "tethered" balloon flight with humans on board took place on October 19, 1783 with the scientist Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier, the manufacture manager, Jean-Baptiste Réveillon and Giroud de Villette, at the "Folie Titon" in Paris. The first "free" flight with human passengers was on November 21,
London International Hot Air Balloon Festival London International Hot Air Balloon Festival The London Hot-Air Balloon Festival (London Balloon Festival) was an annual hot-air balloon festival held in London, Ontario, Canada. The festival, which was held for the first time in 1984 and originally called the London Balloon "Fiesta", used to take place in Harris Park at the forks of the Thames River during Simcoe Day (first Monday in August) weekend. The sponsor of the festival was Sundance Balloons. Spectators could get very close to the balloons, as there was no fixed barricades separating the launch area. Several special-shaped balloons regularly attended, including the Canadian Flag,