CAIRO, Egypt -- Having won one of the last great aeronautical challenges of the century, two men in a balloon landed triumphantly today in the cradle of one of the world's oldest civilizations.
Switzerland's Bertrand Piccard and Britain's Brian Jones descended into Egypt, the land of of the pharaohs, in the early morning today -- on the other side of North Africa from where they became the first human beings to circumnavigate the globe nonstop in a balloon.
Controllers for the longest balloon odyssey in history said the craft landed north of the remote Dakhla oasis, deep into the Western Desert about 300 miles southwest of Cairo, where they had hoped to make a spectacular landing at the pyramids.
The balloon landed in Egypt about 20 hours after already accomplishing a feat that has been the goal of dreamers and adventurers for more than a century.
With a jet stream at their backs and the world more than 30,000 feet below, the two men entered the history books at 4: 54 a.m. (EST) yesterday when they crossed longitude 9 degrees 27 minutes west over West Africa in their epic journey aboard the Breitling Orbiter 3.
At that moment they had traveled 26,542 miles. It had been 19 days, 1 hour and 49 minutes from the time of their launch March 1 amid brisk breezes and high hopes at Chateau-d'Oex in the Swiss Alps.
"I am with the angels and just completely happy," Piccard said shortly after accomplishing the feat. "We are eternally grateful to the invisible hand that has guided us through this fantastic voyage."
"I am going to phone to the control room and tell my wife I love her. And then I am going to have a cup of tea, like any good Englishman," Jones said when asked how he would celebrate.
The duo then pushed across the Sahara, heading for Algeria and Libya, and a planned landing early today in Egypt.
When the global barrier was breached, there were tears and cheers at the team's Geneva headquarters, as flight controllers, meteorologists and family members hugged one another, opened champagne bottles and waited anxiously to hear from the balloonists. First, they received a message that said: "We can hardly believe our dreams have finally come true."
Then, a call came through from the men above, and emotions poured out even more as those involved in the project realized they had achieved their dreams.
"They're very happy men," said project director Alan Noble. "We were shedding tears at each end."
The race to circle the globe in a balloon was among the last great aeronautical challenges as teams around the world poured millions of dollars into the chase to be first.
Others, such as British entrepreneur Richard Branson and American Steve Fossett, had bigger budgets, balloons and publicity machines.
But in the end, the winners were the underdogs, the joint British-Swiss venture sponsored by a Swiss watchmaker -- Breitling.
"It seemed that no matter how much money you threw at the project, it couldn't be done," said Noble. 'Well, it was."
The victorious pair were congratulated by Queen Elizabeth II who said that "the news of your splendid achievement has delighted us all." French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin congratulated the team for its "magnificent exploit."
Branson also called it "a magnificent achievement," and Fossett said the pair had won "one of the greatest competitions in aviation history."
Piccard and Jones will receive a $1 million prize put up by Anheuser-Busch brewers on Nov. 13, 1997. The two will share $500,000, and an equal amount will go to the charity of their choice.
The accomplishment must be ratified by the French-based International Aviation Federation (FAI), which placed several sealed altimeters inside the capsule.
Around-the-world flights must pass a rigorous set of technical specifications, covering at least 16,600 miles without touching down or refueling.
Teams also have to land beyond the degree of longitude from which they depart. After leaving the Alps March 1, the Breitling craft swerved southwest to pick up a jet stream, effectively moving its starting point to longitude 9 degrees 27 minutes west over Northwest Africa.
'No joy ride'
"People said the balloon was too small and we didn't have enough fuel," Noble said. "They were wrong. It's no joy ride, though. There is always the element of danger. You're 35,000 feet high held up by a bag of gas."
Two previous attempts by Piccard and Breitling over the last two years ended in failure. But this time, luck, weather, politics and technology were on their side. The team received permission to fly across China, saving time and distance. Controllers also chose the correct amount of propane to fuel their pear-shaped rozier balloon, filled with hot air and helium.
During their flight, Piccard and Jones took directions from meteorologists on the ground, who plotted the routes to the jet streams, the powerful winds that sent the balloon hurtling through the sky.
"The pilots are blind aboard a balloon," said Luc Trullemans, a Belgian meteorologist. 'We tell them where to go."
For the pilots, it was quite a ride, often exhilarating, although somewhat uncomfortable, since they were wedged into a tiny pressurized cabin, with a phone and satellite link their only connection to those below.
"For nearly three weeks, they have been stuck in what amounts to a small camper van," Noble said. "They're cold and eating pretty bad food. Bertrand said they were self-imposed prisoners."
But at the end, the pilots were determined to break out and make history.
When air traffic control in Dakar, Senegal, asked whether they were going to Mauritania's capital, Nouakchott, or to Mali, Piccard said: "Negative. We do not land. We go to Egypt. We are a balloon flying around the world."
Jean Claude Metille, an advertising executive from Geneva who arrived in Cairo last night to try to watch the landing, said he was not surprised that his friend Piccard would choose Egypt: Egypt and the pyramids epitomize the mystery and myths of the ages.
Metille said Piccard knew this was Piccard's last shot at trying to circle the globe in a balloon. Breitling, the Swiss manufacturer of timing devices, wasn't going to pay for a fourth try.
"Even if they failed, this was the last time," Metille said.
Piccard, a 41-year-old psychiatrist, and Jones, 51, a grandfather and former British air force pilot turned balloon instructor, were a flying odd couple.
The Swiss spoke of the flight's beauty, was prone to mood swings, and needed self-hypnosis to carry him through the journey. The Briton, who learned to fly planes at 16, concentrated on the technical aspects of the journey and emerged as a steadying presence in the cabin. His wife, Joanna, claimed he was no adventurer and described him as a "quiet, calm man,"
Piccard comes from a family of record-breakers and followed in the footsteps of his grandfather Auguste, first to ride a balloon into the stratosphere. His father, Jacques, was the first to descend in a submarine to the planet's deepest point, the Pacific Ocean's Mariana Trench.
Yesterday, a beaming Jacques Piccard wiped away tears and spoke proudly of his son's exploits.
"When he first told me he would fly in the balloon, I didn't tell him no," the elder Piccard said. "I said, 'Wonderful, can you do it?' You always need to encourage your children."
The younger Piccard spoke movingly of the journey and the vehicle that carried him into the record books.
"This balloon became our friend," he said. "It will be difficult when we deflate it. For us, it is the beginning of a new kind of life. For the balloon, it will be the end of its life."
Pub Date: 3/21/99