Characters in Flight Balloon

[DizneyFreak2002]

Reports have circulated around the internet that the Characters in Flight balloon is gone from DTD... Seems like the company who runs the balloon ride had an accident at one of their other rides... Characters in Flight is no longer listed on the company's website... And information about the balloon ride has been removed from WDW's website...

I wonder if the company was responsible for shutting this down or if Disney, because of the accident in China, decided to shut it down... If anyone knows anything, please feel free to let us know...

[Polynesian Dweller]

The accident was at Ocean Park Hong Kong and 5 people were injured. It very nearly was a major accident. The gas bag had a 3m (10 ft) tear and that caused it to plunge 60m (196ft) to the ground. Very nearly tragic.

The company, Aerophile, is trying to determine why this occured and has taken down all of its balloons world wide for inspection. If this is a design flaw then they could be down for a very lengthy period of time or permanently.

[DizneyFreak2002]

The fact Disney removed it from the WDW website is interesting though... Especially with how bad they are updating it...

Better safe than sorry though... Keep it closed to make sure it is safe...

[Strmchsr]

The Characters in Flight balloon is definitely gone from DTD. That is confirmed.

[Melanie]

Very interesting development. I'm surprised it was still in business at this point anyway, being that 95% of the time I'm in WDW, it's not flying (due to wind).

And weird, weird, unprofessional things have been going on with their Twitter account for months. I can't believe Disney has let that continue.

That all said, it will be a bit strange not seeing it at DTD, grounded or not.

[Ed]

The Characters in Flight balloon is definitely gone from DTD. That is confirmed.

Has it been physically removed or just grounded ? :confused:

[DizneyFreak2002]

Has it been physically removed or just grounded ? :confused:

From everything I'm reading and hearing, sounds like it's gone...

[Polynesian Dweller]

From everything I'm reading and hearing, sounds like it's gone...

Yep, moved from its moorings to do a very thorough inspection. Same thing happening at all Aerophile locations worldwide at least those using this design, not just those at Disney parks. This is an Aerophile decision not Disney.

[DizneyFreak2002]

Yep, moved from its moorings to do a very thorough inspection. Same thing happening at all Aerophile locations worldwide at least those using this design, not just those at Disney parks. This is an Aerophile decision not Disney.

And that is the smartest thing to do... Remove it, inspect it, and make sure what happened in China doesn't happen anywhere else... Safety always has to come first...

With that said, I won't be sad if they never bring it back :)

[TinkerbellT421]

These kind of stories are what confirm my fears! :(

DBF past two trips has been trying to get me to ride that thing. I will NOT do it! For fears of that! lol :blush:

[#1donaldfan]

That must be some mysterious rumor as my DD and I were there week before last and it was in operation, at least unmanned. It was flying high the day we were at DtD !!! I don't ride it myself, but certainly did see it in operation. We were there Friday the day Brave opened and unless it was "grounded" after that date.......:cool:

[DizneyFreak2002]

That must be some mysterious rumor as my DD and I were there week before last and it was in operation, at least unmanned. It was flying high the day we were at DtD !!! I don't ride it myself, but certainly did see it in operation. We were there Friday the day Brave opened and unless it was "grounded" after that date.......:cool:

It was removed this past Friday night, a week after you were there...

[TracyL]

I had planned to give it a try, but never quite got around to it, largely due to the aforementioned wind problems. Every time we we there and wanted to go, it was grounded for wind.

Sad to hear about the accident and certainly agree with their decision to ground them all until they sort it out.

[Polynesian Dweller]

That must be some mysterious rumor as my DD and I were there week before last and it was in operation, at least unmanned. It was flying high the day we were at DtD !!! I don't ride it myself, but certainly did see it in operation. We were there Friday the day Brave opened and unless it was "grounded" after that date.......:cool:

Not a rumor. The Hong Kong accident was last Friday (or Thursday depending on report, probably international dateline issue) and the Characters balloon was taken down June 29th for inspection.

[Ischyros]

Well, this makes sense then. Conner Prairie, an interactive history park by where I live, has one of these balloons made by Aerophile. I guess this would be why I haven't seen it flying this week! They have absolutely no information on their website though about if it will be back. The park's website still says this "The balloon manufacturer, Aerophile, located in Paris, France, has a spotless safety record. They have never had an accident."

I've never been on it but I've seen the thing during landing. It sways majorly back and forth, like a giant upside pendulum, and that was during calm winds. I don't know if the one at Disney was the same way as I've never seen it flying, but that is enough to scare me off of riding it!

[VWL Mom]

Wait til I tell my boys! They wanted to go up Thursday night when we were there and I wouldn't let them. I told them it was an accident waiting to happen, talk about deja vu.

[DizneyFreak2002]

Wait til I tell my boys! They wanted to go up Thursday night when we were there and I wouldn't let them. I told them it was an accident waiting to happen, talk about deja vu.

Lynn, what are tonight winning lottery numbers... Quick, NJ still has an hour... :)

I'm wondering how much this is going to hurt Aerophile's business...

[VWL Mom]

Lynn, what are tonight winning lottery numbers... Quick, NJ still has an hour... :)



I'm going with 8 0 3....oh wait, the drawing was at 8P :D

[DizneyFreak2002]

I'm going with 8 0 3....oh wait, the drawing was at 8P :D

Yea too late LOL...

[Melanie]

Definitely gone. I was in DTD today, and the platform is just empty. Although, the kiosk is still there with all the information about pricing, etc.

I was told today by Matt at Attractions Magazine that it would be back. Apparently the balloon was due to be replaced in November anyway, and now instead of repair, they are going to go ahead with replacing. Not sure when it will be back up.

[#1donaldfan]

It was removed this past Friday night, a week after you were there...

Good thing I didn't get on it !! hahaah!!!:cool:

[Mackflava99]

While i always had a feeling that it was a little too unsafe from the wind,
I hope it does come back, i was not a fan at first, but the view is pretty incredible.

I think there is one at the philadelphia zoo too.

[DizneyFreak2002]

While i always had a feeling that it was a little too unsafe from the wind,
I hope it does come back, i was not a fan at first, but the view is pretty incredible.

I think there is one at the philadelphia zoo too.

From what has been said online is the Philly zoo one was also shut down... Haven't read about it being removed though...

[Ischyros]

Drove by the park by our house that has this ride and it's still there, but grounded. It hasn't flown since the accident happened but they haven't removed it at all either.

[Mickey's #1 fan]

Everyone seems to forget that there was no accident at Characters in Flight, the balloon doesn't fly if winds are too high or bad weather in the area. It's lots of fun and yes it does move around with the winds no matter how calm it seems on the ground, but that's part of the fun! The views are amazing at night or during the day. The balloon in China was made by Aerophile but sold to Ocean Park. As far as twitter, some unhappy former employees that apparently didn't do their job well, started it to bash the company! I think this all started late last year or maybe this year, because for a long time the balloon hardly ever flew, but then they got a whole new crew and started flying again! Love the balloon and can't wait to ride it when it returns!

[Melanie]

As far as twitter, some unhappy former employees that apparently didn't do their job well, started it to bash the company! I think this all started late last year or maybe this year, because for a long time the balloon hardly ever flew, but then they got a whole new crew and started flying again! Love the balloon and can't wait to ride it when it returns!

My understanding is that the account which the former disgruntled employee is posting on IS the official Characters in Flight account. Someone correct me if I'm wrong. It certainly didn't start as an account to bash the company. It had legit information and whether they were or were not flying at the time, etc.

The management needs to change the password in order to prevent this guy from posting. Or, it's possible that while still employed, he could have started the account and is the only one with the sign in info. That could be a problem.

The fact that Disney has let this continue is pretty embarrassing, and I don't say stuff like that very often. It's gotten even worse since the accident, even going as far as changing the name of the account to Characters in Fright. Wow!

[Ischyros]

Disney balloon ride may be down for a while

By Jason Garcia, Orlando Sentinel

3:30 PM EDT, July 5, 2012

The Characters in Flight helium-balloon ride at Disney World's Downtown Disney retail area may be out of commission for an extended period.

The tethered balloon, operated by the French company Aerophile, was abruptly closed for inspections after an accident in Hong Kong involving a similar Aerophile balloon. Aerophile also closed a balloon ride at Disneyland Paris.

The company's balloon in Hong Kong sprung a leak and crashed from a height of more than 180 feet, injuring five people, according to an English-language news website in Hong Kong known as The Standard.

But Aerophile said this week it doesn't intend to put the 3-year-old Disney World balloon back in service even after the inspections are complete.

"The balloon of Orlando was scheduled to be replaced in November. Instead of re-inflating it after the inspection — which is a significant cost — we have decided to take it down for now and expedite the replacement work," Aerophile President Jerome Giacomoni said in an email. "We don't know when it will reopen yet, but we hope soon."

Disney, perhaps preparing for an extended absence, has scrubbed references to the balloon ride from DisneyWorld.com.

It's a setback for the Downtown Disney retail venue. Characters in Flight was one of the additions Disney announced back in 2008 to soften the blow of its decision to close the adult nightclubs of Pleasure Island. Disney has yet to produce a long-promised new vision for Pleasure Island.

Looks like the balloon was going to be replaced anyway so they're just going to go ahead and do it now. That's why it's not listed on the website anymore.

EDIT: Sorry, I missed that Melanie had already posted that they were replacing it.

[DizneyFreak2002]

My understanding is that the account which the former disgruntled employee is posting on IS the official Characters in Flight account. Someone correct me if I'm wrong. It certainly didn't start as an account to bash the company. It had legit information and whether they were or were not flying at the time, etc.

The management needs to change the password in order to prevent this guy from posting. Or, it's possible that while still employed, he could have started the account and is the only one with the sign in info. That could be a problem.

The fact that Disney has let this continue is pretty embarrassing, and I don't say stuff like that very often. It's gotten even worse since the accident, even going as far as changing the name of the account to Characters in Fright. Wow!

Their Twitter account was hacked...

[Mickey's #1 fan]

The twitter account was started by former employees and they are the ones posting. Hopefully people are smart enough to see thru it and realize it for what it is. We've always had a great time flying the balloon and can't wait to see the new one!

[Melanie]

Their Twitter account was hacked...


The twitter account was started by former employees and they are the ones posting. Hopefully people are smart enough to see thru it and realize it for what it is. We've always had a great time flying the balloon and can't wait to see the new one!

I get it that it was hacked, that wasn't my issue. Why the heck hasn't Disney done anything about it? When the account was first started, it was presented as a legit account. That cannot be disputed.

[Jared]

Disney and the balloon Twitter account definitely have some bizarre relationship. The last time somebody hacked the balloon account, I posted on Twitter how I wished the official Disney World accounts were as interesting as the balloon account. The Walt Disney World account actually tweeted back at me, "Well, I guess we'll have to start tweeting more about balloons."

The whole thing was just weird.

[Melanie]

Disney and the balloon Twitter account definitely have some bizarre relationship. The last time somebody hacked the balloon account, I posted on Twitter how I wished the official Disney World accounts were as interesting as the balloon account. The Walt Disney World account actually tweeted back at me, "Well, I guess we'll have to start tweeting more about balloons."

The whole thing was just weird.

Exactly. :yes:

It's bizarre.

[DizneyFreak2002]

I get it that it was hacked, that wasn't my issue. Why the heck hasn't Disney done anything about it? When the account was first started, it was presented as a legit account. That cannot be disputed.

I honestly never looked at the account...

The key here is getting the balloon inspected and made sure it is safe...

Hey... at least this time it isn't TDO's fault... LOL... :)

[Melanie]

I honestly never looked at the account...

The key here is getting the balloon inspected and made sure it is safe...

Not disputing that. But again, the whole Twitter thing is weird. Whether you are into Twitter or not, it's part of our world, and relevant in this situation.