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British observation balloon from 1908, typical of pre-WWI observation balloons. An observation balloon is a type of balloon that is employed as an aerial platform for gathering intelligence and spotting artillery. The use of observation balloons began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War I, and they ...
Caquot kite balloon (in French Caquot Captif) was a type of non-rigid military observation balloon, designed in 1915 by Albert Caquot.The type became widely used by Allied forces in World War I warfare for multiple observation or naval defence uses and later also as a anti-aircraft barrage balloon.
The following year, during the Siege of Mainz an observation balloon was employed again. However, the French military use of the balloon did not continue uninterrupted, as in 1799 Napoleon disbanded the French balloon corps. [2] In 1804, Napoleon considered invading England by landing troops transported by balloons.
The story of aviation at Chalais-Meudon starts in October 1793 when the French Public Safety Committee ordered the construction of an observation balloon capable of carrying two observers. The old royal grounds at Meudon were allocated for this work, with the Château de Meudon chosen as the centre, with Nicolas-Jacques Conté as director.
The French Army at one point had 76 companies operating Caquot balloons. [3] The first aircraft on aircraft rocket attack was made on 22 May 1916 when a group of eight French aces including Charles Nungesser made a dawn attack while flying Nieuport 16s armed with eight Le Prieur rockets each, that shot down six balloons. [7]
On 22 June, the corps received orders to move the balloon to the plain of Fleurus, in front of the Austrian troops at Charleroi. This was achieved by twenty soldiers who dragged the inflated balloon across thirty miles of ground. [3] For the three following days, an officer ascended to make further observations.
The balloon's silk envelope is roughly spherical and has a diameter of 9.8 metres (32 ft). Its wooden gondola is very small, measuring 1.14 metres (45 in) by 0.75 metres (30 in) and its railing has a height of 1.05 metres (41 in). [2] The balloon envelope is a replica, with the original displayed folded in a glass case nearby. [1]
The Zénith (French: ⓘ) was a hydrogen gas balloon of 3,000 cubic metres (110,000 cu ft), designed by French aeronaut and navy officer Théodore Sivel, funded by the French Air Navigation Company (Société Française de Navigation Aérienne) and built in 1874. The balloon set records before causing the first deaths of aeronauts due to ...