Hot air balloon rides rise again over Luxor under tighter safety rules
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On April 26, balloons flights over Luxor were suspended after an accident in which 16 tourists were injured.
During the enforced break, the Egyptian Civil Aviation Authority has insisted the companies introduce numerous safety measures.
All 42 pilots from the eight companies who operate flights have been re-trained, whatever their safety record.
In addition, all take-offs are now confined to what is reportedly the world’s first hot air balloon ‘airport’, a 45-minute drive from central Luxor, not far the famous Colossi of Memnon statues and Hatshepsut’s Mortuary Temple.
From now on, the maximum number of balloons allowed up at the same time is eight – previously, anything up to 50 shared air space, which was potentially hazardous.
Each operator can offer up to three flights per morning, with an hour between each, before the land heats up.
Regulation has to be paid for though, so inevitably, the cost of the 30-minute or so flights has rocketed from around £65 at its cheapest, to £120 if you want the dawn flight.
Excerpted from an article by Wendy Gomersall for Mail Online
