Something New From Uliassi

Kevin Uliassi has found a few new ways to satisfy his passion for flight. The Chicago Heights native announced this week three new projects he has in development. And when Kevin Uliassi commits to something, it gets done.

Last year when his rival Steve Fossett beat him to be the first to fly solo around the world in a balloon, Uliassi was more than a little deflated.

A New Challenge

In wake of Fossett's achievement, Uliassi has found new enthusiasm and set his sights on a solo round-the-world balloon flight through the northern hemisphere, a balloon altitude record and a solo airplane flight around the world.

Uliassi calls it his own comeback of sorts. His first two priorities are the altitude record and the solo plane flight.

The airplane flight could go as early as September. Plans are underway to build a light, twin propeller craft that would cruise about 30,000 feet. He estimates the trip could take about four and a half days.

Record Attempt in Fall?

The altitude record could also be done in the fall, around October, though probably not in the same year. The current record for a helium-filled balloon is 113,739 feet, set in 1961. If all goes according to plan, Uliassi's balloon would lift off from North Dakota and soar to 130,000 feet, more that four times the altitude of Mount Everest. The flight would take about 12 hours.

Uliassi said he would have at least one co-pilot, possibly two but declined to say who they are until plans are solidified. But the one goal he says would always have special significance is a round-the-world solo balloon flight.

Despite Fossett's solo record, Uliassi still plans to accomplish the same feat. The difference is he'll follow a northern flight path rather than a southern route similar to Fossett's. When he first began planning for such a solo flight in 1986, the feat was not about setting a record. It has always been a personal goal, he said, whether or not he'd be the first to do it.

"Records are not important to me," he said from his home in Phoenix. "It's more about the purity of the achievement. I won't be the first to fly solo around the world, but I'll do it the way I wanted to."

Fame? Not This Guy

Uliassi says his pursuits are not about fame either. "This is not about glory seeking. It's really about the excitement I get from aviation and trying to solve complex problems. It's about my passion for aviation and pushing myself for more achievement.

"For me personally there is something out there I have to prove to myself, not anyone else," he said. A solo flight would still be a first of sorts. Only the two-person crew of Brian Jones and Bertrand Piccard has traveled around the globe over the northern hemisphere.

However, such a flight poses different challenges, politically and meteorologically. Uliassi's balloon would travel over more land mass than a southern hemisphere trip, which significantly alters weather patterns. The jet stream, which helps propel the balloon, flows differently.

There are political considerations too. Traveling over more land mass means more governments to negotiate with when traveling through air space. But perhaps the most significant is the distance is more suitable. A northern flight would be longer, more to Uliassi's liking.

Uliassi said he's always believed a solo round-the-world balloon flight should be closer to the earth's equatorial circumference of 24,902 miles, a distance he plans to reach. Fossett's flight was 22,100 miles, but still met criteria for the record set by the Federation Aeronautique Internationale.

Existing rules for an around the world flight are incorrect, allowing too short of a flight, Uliassi said. "I don't want to take this away from Steve or suggest it was not an accomplishment or an arduous flight," he said. "But there is something more that needs to be accomplished."

After Fossett touched down in Australia last July, Uliassi said he has since learned to examine his love of flying in broader terms. He said a balloon altitude record and a solo airplane flight around the world have been his goals for quite some time. But he was convinced he had to accomplish his solo balloon flight first before turning to other projects.

Multi-Tasking

Now, he is not afraid to plan multiple projects simultaneously. And he will continue to set more goals along the way.

FMI: www.fai.org