Guys, does flying balloons pose a threat to others?

[darkjorik]

I'm watched the youtube video about balloon near space and found this forum.
Guys what are you do, what about planes?
Can regular planes can be crashed and people can be killed by this balloons?

[dgerson]

Hi there!

Thank you for bringing up this concern - but do not be alarmed! Countries all have regulations around flying high altitude balloons, particularly so that launches of balloons can be coordinated with other activity in the airspace (like air plane flights). For example, in the US we have to get permission from the FAA so that they can give all planes a heads up that we are going to launch. In most places, it is not allowed to fly near active airports so that planes aren't put at risk. You can see some notes on regulations and details about the FAA rules here: https://community.balloonchallenge.org/t/regulations-overview-including-contacting-the-us-faa/676

The balloon spends very, very little time in the 30-40,000 ft window that planes are in, so the risk is quite low.

Also - many government organizations fly balloons all the time! Before rocket launches, for example, dozens of balloons are flown to measure wind speeds at altitude to help determine if it is safe to launch the rocket.

Thanks for voicing your concern but be assured this is all completely legal!

Best,
David

[darkjorik]

How many balloons flyed without permission from FAA ?
What can be happend if no have permission?

[dgerson]

In the US it is illegal to fly without permission from the FAA. No teams in the US associated with the GSBC fly without FAA permission.

If you don't have permission, then you cannot fly. But the FAA is very helpful and gives you feedback on what you need to do differently in order to get permission, so teams always get permission eventually in our experience.

[MayPlay]

Ok, can you clarify this part from the link above:

"For most high altitude balloon flights, the Federal Aviation Administration does not need to be notified prior to the launch. However, as described above, if you are subject to the provisions of Subpart D, then you must contact the FAA."

If you don't need to notify them, it sounds a lot like you don't need to ask for permission? I.E. How can you have permission if you don't notify them?

Would really appreciate the clarification.

[MayPlay]

And Of course I'm talking about flights that meet the requirements for NOT being subject to subpart D.

[dgerson]

Pulling a quote from the regulations page:

"Even though there are no notification requirements if a balloon is not subject to the provisions of Subpart D since it has a light-weight payload, operators should consider notifying local air traffic facilities as a courtesy"

It is our policy to treat FAA approval as a requirement because it is critical to work with them (often approval is just calling your local FAA group to give them a heads up), but you are correct that it is not required for certain HABs.