The first crossing of the English Channel by air

Balloonomania was sweeping through France, England and beyond in the early 1780s as people’s imaginations were captivated by an innovative, seemingly magical new form of travel: hot-air ballooning. A host of budding aviators, daring adventurers and record-setters took to the skies with their sights firmly set on continually reaching higher and thrusting further.

And it soon became clear that the first major step in long-distance balloon flight was going to be a successful crossing of the English Channel. At the narrowest point, just 21 miles of ocean separate Britain and France – it is possible to see one country from the other on a clear