Author: Khalid A-H Ansari
Publication: Mid-Day
Date: November 28, 2005
URL: http://web.mid-day.com/news/city/2005/november/124471.htm
Vijaypat Singhania is convinced he was blessed
with more than a fair dollop of what he terms ''good luck'' in his record
breaking balloon flight last Saturday.
''I am grateful to God and Shirdi Sai Babaji
for making the trip possible,'' Vijaypat told me yesterday.
Members of the Willingdon Sports Club gave
him a standing ovation when he entered the bar-cum-dining area of the Willingdon
Sports Club yesterday afternoon.
Dressed in a safari suit, Vijaypat looked
relaxed as he recounted details of his voyage to the edge of space.
''Every time it seemed that my mission would
fail, God and Baba came to my rescue,'' he said. ''I was in constant communication
with them all the way.''
The unexpectedly strong winds lifted off his
balloon from its moorings prematurely, even before he was fully ready. Whereas
the balloon should have taken off vertically, the gust dragged him westwards
towards the sea at a dangerously low altitude.
At this juncture a rescue helicopter set off
in pursuit and chief co-coordinator Andy Elson radioed to Vijaypat that he
should ditch the balloon into the sea.
''How farcical it would have been had I abandoned
the mission just a few minutes after lift-off. I would have been the laughing
stock of the world.
With the burners not working efficiently,
I turned to God and Saibaba and asked them to save my honour.
''You won't believe me, but at that very moment
my prayers were answered, the burners kicked up and the balloon started to
lift off, as if by Divine ordination.
''However, my burners started packing up soon
after lift-off and it didn't take long for all 18 of them to stop functioning.
For the major part of my journey the balloon was powered by solar heat.''
Vijaypat says the balloon's ascent stalled
at 60,000. ''Hey Baba,'' I said. ''You have brought me so close to the record,
don't let me down now."
''My prayers were answered again and the balloon
soared past Per Lindstrand's record of 64,997 feet to a height of 69,852 feet.''
''At this stage Andy ordered me to return.
I was sorely tempted to stay back, burn a little fuel and ascend to 71,000,
perhaps even 72,000 feet.
''But I recalled Andy's voice admonishing
me that anything above 45,000 is fraught with dire consequences. I decided
discretion was the better part of valour and started descending.''
Apart from the problem with burners, there
were snafus with pressurisation of the capsule, frosting of the cockpit window
and failure of the camera and radio systems. A major slip-up concerned the
lack of toilet facilities.
Referring to problems during his descent,
Vijaypat said he ignored Andy Elson's advice to slow down his descent speed,
which would have necessitated his having to stay aloft for another five to
six hours.
''I used my commander's prerogative and decided
to return even though my speed was dangerously fast. I was fortunate to land
on my back. Had the capsule tilted forward during touchdown, serious injury
could have resulted.
''Somebody up there was definitely watching
over me,'' he says. He also considers his landing at Sidpimpri, 10 miles away
from Nasik and a short helicopter ride from Shirdi significant.
Certification of the record by the Federation
Aviation Internationale, the world body, is expected shortly.
Meanwhile, Jatin Vakani, Singhania's long-time
flying companion claims that although the altimetre in the capsule shows a
reading of 69,852 feet, the 164-ft height of the balloon increases it past
the targeted figure of 70,000 to 70,016.
Vijaypat mischievously refused to be drawn
into divulging future plans. However, his Cloud Nine demeanour suggested that
Mission Impossible was, by no stretch of the imagination, his last adventure.
