New Offaly venue for Irish Hot Air Ballooning Championships

THIS year's Irish Hot Air Ballooning Championships will take place in Tullamore from Saturday, September 23 to Friday, September 29.

Last year the event was held in the grounds of Birr Castle and the Irish Ballooning Association has yet to reveal the launch site in Tullamore.

The association said the skies above Tullamore will be filled with the beautiful sight of dozens of hot air balloons.

Weather permitting, the first flights will be on the evening of Saturday, September 23, with further flights each morning and evening up to Friday, September 29.

The association's website said: “The public are actively encouraged to come out and see the balloons as they launch. The balloons will make a spectacular display in the skies over Tullamore so bring your camera. The attraction of so many balloons flying can be mesmerizing, so we issue a note of caution to be mindful of traffic and road users while enjoying the spectacle!

“It is not possible to provide flights to the public during the week however it is a fun, social event for everyone’s enjoyment so get your cameras ready and record your favourite shots for the album.

“Ballooning is 100% weather [dependent] and subject to quite strict weather conditions; it’s not always possible to tell if the weather is suitable without a full meteorological forecast which we obtain just prior to planning any flight. If it’s flyable, we will fly, if a no fly decision is made, it is done so for very good reasons and with the safety of everyone involved at the forefront of the decision making. Until the flight briefing, we will be unable to confirm if a flight will go ahead or not.”