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The genus Aquila (all have "booted" or feathered tarsi) has a nearly worldwide distribution. The more powerful types are used in falconry; for example golden eagles (A. chrysaetos) have reportedly been used to hunt wolves^[11] in Kazakhstan, and are now most widely used by the Altaic Kazakh eagle hunters in the western Mongolian province of Bayan-Ölgii to hunt foxes,^{[12][13][14][15][16]} and other large prey, as they are in neighbouring Kyrgyzstan.^[17] Most are primarily ground-oriented, but occasionally take birds. Eagles are not used as widely in falconry as other birds of prey, due to the lack of versatility in the larger species (they primarily hunt over large, open ground), the greater potential danger to other people if hunted in a widely populated area, and the difficulty of training and managing an eagle. A little over 300 active falconers are using eagles in Central Asia, with 250 in western Mongolia, 50 in Kazakhstan, and smaller numbers in Kyrgyzstan and western China.^[15]

Most species in the genus Haliaeetus catch and eat fish, some almost exclusively, but in countries where they are not protected, some have been effectively used in hunting for ground quarry.^{[citation needed]} Bald eagles (H. leucocephalus) have been tried by law enforcement agencies in the Netherlands and elsewhere for catching illegal drones,^[18] though the experiment was not successful outside of trials, as the eagles were easily distracted.^[19]

Main articles: Hack (falconry) and Falconry training and technique

Falconry is currently practiced in many countries around the world. The falconer's traditional choice of bird is the Eurasian and American goshawks and peregrine falcon. In contemporary falconry in both North America and the UK, they remain popular, although Harris' hawks and red-tailed hawks are likely more widely used. The Eurasian goshawk and the golden eagle are more commonly used in Eastern Europe than elsewhere. In the west Asia, the saker falcon is the most traditional species flown against the houbara bustard, sandgrouse, stone-curlew, other birds, and hares. Peregrines and other captive-bred imported falcons are also commonplace. Falconry remains an important part of the Arab heritage and culture. The UAE reportedly spends over US$27 million annually towards the protection and conservation of wild falcons, and has set up several state-of-the-art falcon hospitals in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.^[20] The Abu Dhabi Falcon Hospital is the largest falcon hospital in the world. Two breeding farms are in the Emirates, as well as those in Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Every year, falcon beauty contests and demonstrations take place at the ADIHEX exhibition in Abu Dhabi.

Eurasian sparrowhawks were formerly used to take a range of small birds, but have since fallen out of favour due to their fragility and the availability of various American species.^{[citation needed]}

In North America and the UK, falcons usually fly only after birds. Large falcons are typically trained to fly in the "waiting-on" style, where the falcon climbs and circles above the falconer or dog and the quarry is flushed when the falcon is in the desired commanding position. Classical game hawking in the UK had a brace of peregrine falcons flown against red grouse, or merlins in "ringing" flights after skylarks. Rooks and crows are classic game for the larger falcons, and the magpie, making up in cunning what it lacks in flying ability, is another common target. Short-wings^{[clarification needed]} can be flown in both open and wooded country against a variety of bird and small mammal prey. Most hunting with large falcons requires large, open tracts where the falcon is afforded opportunity to strike or seize its quarry before it reaches cover. Most of Europe practices similar styles of falconry, but with differing degrees of regulation.

Medieval falconers often rode horses, but this is now rare with the exception of contemporary Kazakh and Mongolian falconry. In Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Mongolia, the golden eagle is traditionally flown (often from horseback), hunting game as large as foxes and wolves.^[22]

In Japan, the Eurasian goshawk has been used for centuries. Japan continues to honour its strong historical links with falconry (takagari), while adopting some modern techniques and technologies.

In Australia, although falconry is not specifically illegal, it is illegal to keep any type of bird of prey in captivity without the appropriate permits. The only exemption is when the birds are kept for purposes of rehabilitation (for which a licence must still be held), and in such circumstances it may be possible for a competent falconer to teach a bird to hunt and kill wild quarry, as part of its regime of rehabilitation to good health and a fit state to be released into the wild.

In New Zealand, falconry was formally legalised for one species only, the swamp/Australasian harrier (Circus approximans) in 2011. This was only possible with over 25 years of effort from both Wingspan National Bird of Prey Center^[23] and the Raptor Association of New Zealand.^[24] Falconry can only be practiced by people who have been issued a falconry permit by the Department of Conservation. Tangent aspects, such as bird abatement and raptor rehabilitation, also employ falconry techniques to accomplish their goals.

Falcons can live into their midteens, with larger hawks living longer and eagles likely to see out middle-aged owners. Through the captive breeding of rescued birds, the last 30 years have had a great rebirth of the sport, with a host of innovations; falconry's popularity, through lure flying displays at country houses and game fairs, has probably never been higher in the past 300 years. Ornithologist Tim Gallagher, editor of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Living Bird magazine, documented his experiences with modern falconry in a 2008 book, Falcon Fever.^[a]

Making use of the natural relationship between raptors and their prey, falconry is now used to control pest birds and animals in urban areas, landfills, commercial buildings,^[26] hotels, and airports.^[27]

Falconry centres or bird-of-prey centres house these raptors. They are responsible for many aspects of bird-of-prey conservation (through keeping the birds for education and breeding). Many conduct regular flying demonstrations and educational talks, and are popular with visitors worldwide.

Such centres may also provide falconry courses, hawk walks, displays, and other experiences with these raptors.

Getting into falconry requires dedication, study, and hands-on experience. In the United States, aspiring falconers must pass a written falconry exam and obtain the appropriate state and federal licenses before keeping a bird of prey. Many beginners start by studying local wildlife laws, bird care, and hunting techniques to prepare for the exam. In the United Kingdom, newcomers often begin by volunteering at a falconry centre or finding an experienced falconer to act as a mentor under the British Falconers’ Club or similar organisations. There are also structured training opportunities, such as professional falconry courses offered by institutions like Falconry Course, which provide comprehensive introductions to the sport, bird handling, and conservation practices.^[28]

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In the UK, the British Falconers' Club (BFC) is the oldest and largest of the falconry clubs. BFC was founded in 1927 by the surviving members of the Old Hawking Club, itself founded in 1864. Working closely with the Hawk Board, an advisory body representing the interests of UK bird of prey keepers, the BFC is in the forefront of raptor conservation, falconer education, and sustainable falconry. Established in 1927, the BFC now has a membership over 1,200 falconers. It began as a small and elite club, but it is now a sizeable democratic organisation that has members from all walks of life, flying hawks, falcons, and eagles at legal quarry throughout the British Isles.

The North American Falconers Association^[29] (NAFA), founded in 1961, is the premier club for falconry in the US, Canada, and Mexico, and has members worldwide. NAFA is the primary club in the United States and has a membership from around the world. Most USA states have their own falconry clubs. Although these clubs are primarily social, they also serve to represent falconers within their states in regards to that state's wildlife regulations.

The International Association for Falconry and Conservation of Birds of Prey,^[30] founded in 1968, currently represents 156 falconry clubs and conservation organisations from 87 countries worldwide, totalling over 75,000 members.

The Saudi Falcons Club preserves the historical heritage associated with the falconry culture, and spreads awareness and provides training to protect falcons and flourish falconry.^[tone]

The successful and now widespread captive breeding of birds of prey began as a response to dwindling wild populations due to persistent toxins such as PCBs and DDT, systematic persecution as undesirable predators, habitat loss, and the resulting limited availability of popular species for falconry, particularly the peregrine falcon. The first known raptors to breed in captivity belonged to a German falconer named Renz Waller. In 1942–43, he produced two young peregrines in Düsseldorf in Germany.

The first successful captive breeding of peregrine falcons in North America occurred in the early 1970s by the Peregrine Fund, professor and falconer Heinz Meng, and other private falconer/breeders such as David Jamieson and Les Boyd who bred the first peregrines by means of artificial insemination. In Great Britain, falconer Phillip Glasier of the Falconry Centre in Newent, Gloucestershire, was successful in obtaining young from more than 20 species of captive raptors. A cooperative effort began between various government agencies, non-government organizations, and falconers to supplement various wild raptor populations in peril. This effort was strongest in North America where significant private donations along with funding allocations through the Endangered Species Act of 1972 provided the means to continue the release of captive-bred peregrines, golden eagles, bald eagles, aplomado falcons and others. By the mid-1980s, falconers had become self-sufficient as regards sources of birds to train and fly, in addition to the immensely important conservation benefits conferred by captive breeding.

Between 1972 and 2001, nearly all peregrines used for falconry in the U.S. were captive-bred from the progeny of falcons taken before the U. S. Endangered Species Act was passed, and from those few infusions of wild genes available from Canada and special circumstances. Peregrine falcons were removed from the United States' endangered species list on August 25, 1999.^[31] Finally, after years of close work with the US Fish and Wildlife Service, a limited take of wild peregrines was allowed in 2001, the first wild peregrines taken specifically for falconry in over 30 years.

Some controversy has existed over the origins of captive-breeding stock used by the Peregrine Fund in the recovery of peregrine falcons throughout the contiguous United States. Several peregrine subspecies were included in the breeding stock, including birds of Eurasian origin. Due to the extirpation of the eastern subspecies (Falco peregrinus anatum), its near extirpation in the Midwest, and the limited gene pool within North American breeding stock, the inclusion of non-native subspecies was justified to optimize the genetic diversity found within the species as a whole.^[32] Such strategies are common in endangered species reintroduction scenarios, where dramatic population declines result in a genetic bottleneck and the loss of genetic diversity.

Laws regulating the hunting, import and export of wild falcons vary across Asia, and effective enforcement of current national and international regulations is lacking in some regions. It is possible that the spread of captive-bred falcons in falcon markets in the Arabian Peninsula has mitigated this demand for wild falcons.

The species within the genus Falco are closely related, and some pairings produce viable offspring. The heavy northern gyrfalcon and Asiatic saker are especially closely related, and whether the Altai falcon is a subspecies of the saker or descendants of naturally occurring hybrids is not known. Peregrine and prairie falcons have been observed breeding in the wild and have produced offspring.^[33] These pairings are thought to be rare, but extra-pair copulations between closely related species may occur more frequently and/or account for most natural occurring hybridization. Some male first-generation hybrids may have viable sperm, whereas very few first-generation female hybrids lay fertile eggs. Thus, naturally occurring hybridization is thought to be somewhat insignificant to gene flow in raptor species.

The first hybrid falcons produced in captivity occurred in western Ireland when veteran falconer Ronald Stevens and John Morris put a male saker and a female peregrine into the same moulting mews for the spring and early summer, and the two mated and produced offspring.

Captive-bred hybrid falcons have been available since the late 1970s, and enjoyed a meteoric rise in popularity in North America and the UK in the 1990s. Hybrids were initially "created" to combine the horizontal speed and size of the gyrfalcon with the good disposition and aerial ability of the peregrine. Hybrid falcons first gained large popularity throughout the Arabian Peninsula, feeding a demand for particularly large and aggressive female falcons capable and willing to take on the very large houbara bustard, the classic falconry quarry in the deserts of the West Asia. These falcons were also very popular with Arab falconers, as they tended to withstand a respiratory disease (aspergillosis from the mold genus Aspergillus) in stressful desert conditions better than other pure species from the Northern Hemisphere.

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Some believe that no species of raptor have been in captivity long enough to have undergone successful selective breeding for desired traits. Captive breeding of raptors over several generations tends to result, either deliberately, or inevitably as a result of captivity, in selection for certain traits, including:

• Ability to survive in captivity
• Ability to breed in captivity
• Suitability (in most cases) for interactions with humans for falconry: Birds that demonstrated an unwillingness to hunt with men were most often discarded, rather than being placed in breeding projects
• With gyrfalcons in areas away from their natural Arctic tundra habitat, better disease resistance
• With gyrfalcons, feather color^[34]

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Falconers' birds are inevitably lost on occasion, though most are found again. The main reason birds can be found again is because, during free flights, birds usually wear radio transmitters or bells. The transmitters are in the middle of the tail, on the back, or attached to the bird's legs.

Records of species becoming established in Britain after escaping or being released include:

• Escaped Harris's hawks have bred in the wild in Britain on a few occasions, though no naturalised population has become established.^[35]
• The return of the Eurasian goshawk as a breeding bird to Britain since 1945 is due in large part to falconers' escapes; the earlier British population was wiped out by gamekeepers and egg collectors in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
• A pair of European eagle owls bred in the wild in Yorkshire for several years, feeding largely or entirely on rabbits. The pair are most likely captive escapees. If this will lead to a population becoming established is not yet known.

In 1986, a lost captive-bred female prairie falcon (which had been cross-fostered by an adult peregrine in captivity) mated with a wild male peregrine in Utah. The prairie falcon was trapped and the eggs removed, incubated, and hatched, and the hybrid offspring were given to falconers. The wild peregrine paired with another peregrine the next year.

Falconry in Hawaii is prohibited largely due to the fears of escaped non-native birds of prey becoming established on the island chain and aggravating an already rampant problem of invasive species impacts on native wildlife and plant communities.

In sharp contrast to the US, falconry in Great Britain is permitted without a special license, but a restriction exists of using only captive-bred birds. In the lengthy, record-breaking debates in Westminster during the passage of the 1981 Wildlife and Countryside Bill, efforts were made by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and other lobby groups to have falconry outlawed, but these were successfully resisted. After a centuries-old but informal existence in Britain, the sport of falconry was finally given formal legal status in Great Britain by the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, which allowed it to continue, provided all captive raptors native to the UK were officially ringed and government-registered. DNA testing was also available to verify birds' origins. Since 1982, the British government's licensing requirements have been overseen by the Chief Wildlife Act Inspector for Great Britain, who is assisted by a panel of unpaid assistant inspectors.

British falconers are entirely reliant upon captive-bred birds for their sport. The taking of raptors from the wild for falconry, although permitted by law under government licence, has not been allowed in recent decades.

Anyone is permitted to possess legally registered or captive-bred raptors, although falconers are anxious to point out this is not synonymous with falconry, which specifically entails the hunting of live quarry with a trained bird. A raptor kept merely as a possession for pleasure (like an aviary bird), although the law may allow it, is not considered to be a falconer's bird. Birds may be used for breeding or kept after their hunting days are over, but falconers believe it is preferable that young, fit birds are flown at quarry.

In the United States, falconry is legal in all states except Hawaii, and in the District of Columbia. A falconer must have a state permit to practice the sport. (Requirements for a federal permit were changed in 2008 and the program discontinued effective January 1, 2014.)^[36] Acquiring a falconry license in the United States requires an aspiring falconer to pass a written test, have equipment and facilities inspected, and serve a minimum of two years as an apprentice under a licensed falconer, during which time, the apprentice falconer may only possess one raptor. Three classes of the falconry license have a permit issued jointly by the falconer's state of residence and the federal government. The aforementioned apprentice license matriculates to a general class license, which allows the falconer to up to three raptors at one time. (Some jurisdictions may further limit this.) After a minimum of five years at general level, falconers may apply for a master class license, which allows them to keep up to five wild raptors for falconry and an unlimited number of captive-produced raptors. (All must be used for falconry.) Certain highly experienced master falconers may also apply to possess golden eagles for falconry.

Within the United States, a state's regulations are limited by federal law and treaties protecting raptors. Most states afford falconers an extended hunting season relative to seasons for archery and firearms, but species to be hunted, bag limits, and possession limits remain the same for both. No extended seasons for falconry exist for the hunting of migratory birds such as waterfowl and doves.

Federal regulation of falconry in North America is enforced under the statutes of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 (MBTA), originally designed to address the rampant commercial market hunting of migratory waterfowl during the early 20th century. Birds of prey suffered extreme persecution from the early 20th century through the 1960s, where thousands of birds were shot at conspicuous migration sites, and many state wildlife agencies issued bounties for carcasses.^[37] Due to widespread persecution and further impacts to raptor populations from DDT and other toxins, the act was amended in 1972 to include birds of prey. (Eagles are also protected under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act of 1959.) Under the MBTA, taking migratory birds, their eggs, feathers, or nests is illegal. Take is defined in the MBTA to "include by any means or in any manner, any attempt at hunting, pursuing, wounding, killing, possessing, or transporting any migratory bird, nest, egg, or part thereof".^[38] Falconers are allowed to trap and otherwise possess certain birds of prey and their feathers with special permits issued by the Migratory Bird Office of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and by state wildlife agencies (issuers of trapping permits).

The Convention on International Trade on Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES) restricts the import and export of most native birds species and are listed in the CITES Appendices I, II, and III.

The Wild Bird Conservation Act, legislation put into effect circa 1993, regulates importation of any CITES-listed birds into the United States.

Some controversy exists over the issue of falconer's ownership of captive-bred birds of prey. Falconry permits are issued by states in a manner that entrusts falconers to "take" (trap) and possess permitted birds and use them only for permitted activities, but does not transfer legal ownership. No legal distinction is made between native wild-trapped vs. captive-bred birds of the same species. This legal position is designed to discourage the commercial exploitation of native wildlife.

Evidence suggests that the art of falconry may have begun in Mesopotamia, with the earliest accounts dating to around 2,000 BC. Also, some raptor representations are in the northern Altai, western Mongolia.^[2][39] The falcon was a symbolic bird of ancient Mongol tribes.^[40] Some disagreement exists about whether such early accounts document the practice of falconry (from the Epic of Gilgamesh and others) or are misinterpreted depictions of humans with birds of prey.^{[41][page needed][42][page needed]} During the Turkic Period of Central Asia (seventh century AD), concrete figures of falconers on horseback were described on the rocks in Kyrgyz.^[39] Frederick II of Hohenstaufen (1194–1250) is generally acknowledged as the most significant wellspring of traditional falconry knowledge. He is believed to have obtained firsthand knowledge of Arabic falconry during wars in the region (between June 1228 and June 1229). He obtained a copy of Moamyn's manual on falconry and had it translated into Latin by Theodore of Antioch. Frederick II himself made corrections to the translation in 1241, resulting in De Scientia Venandi per Aves.^[43] King Frederick II is most recognized for his falconry treatise, De arte venandi cum avibus (On The Art of Hunting with Birds). Written himself toward the end of his life, it is widely accepted as the first comprehensive book of falconry, but also notable in its contributions to ornithology and zoology. De arte venandi cum avibus incorporated a diversity of scholarly traditions from east to west, and is one of the earliest challenges to Aristotle's explanations of nature.^{[44][page needed]}

Mughal emperor Jahangir in the desert hunting deer with a falcon., Brooklyn Museum, c. 1600.

Historically, falconry was a popular sport and status symbol among the nobles of medieval Europe, and Asia.^{[citation needed]} Many historical illustrations left in Rashid al Din's "Compendium chronicles" book described falconry of the middle centuries with Mongol images. Falconry was largely restricted to the noble classes due to the prerequisite commitment of time, money, and space. In art and other aspects of culture, such as literature, falconry remained a status symbol long after it was no longer popularly practiced. The historical significance of falconry within lower social classes may be underrepresented in the archaeological record, due to a lack of surviving evidence, especially from nonliterate nomadic and nonagrarian societies. Within nomadic societies such as the Bedouin, falconry was not practiced for recreation by noblemen. Instead, falcons were trapped and hunted on small game during the winter to supplement a very limited diet.^{[46][page needed]}

In the UK and parts of Europe, falconry probably reached its zenith in the 17th century,^[1][2] but soon faded, particularly in the late 18th and 19th centuries, as firearms became the tool of choice for hunting. (This likely took place throughout Europe and Asia in differing degrees.) Falconry in the UK had a resurgence in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when a number of falconry books were published.^[47] This revival led to the introduction of falconry in North America in the early 20th century. Colonel R. Luff Meredith is recognized as the father of North American falconry.^[48]

Throughout the 20th century, modern veterinary practices and the advent of radio telemetry (transmitters attached to free-flying birds) increased the average lifespan of falconry birds, and allowed falconers to pursue quarry and styles of flight that had previously resulted in the loss of their hawk or falcon.

• 722–705 BC – An Assyrian bas-relief found in the ruins at Khorsabad during the excavation of the palace of Sargon II (Sargon II) has been claimed to depict falconry. In fact, it depicts an archer shooting at raptors and an attendant capturing a raptor. A. H. Layard's statement in his 1853 book Discoveries in the Ruins of Nineveh and Babylon is "A falconer bearing a hawk on his wrist appeared to be represented in a bas-relief which I saw on my last visit to those ruins."
• 680 BC – Chinese records describe falconry.
• Fourth century BC – Aristotle wrote that in Thrace, the boys who want to hunt small birds, take hawks with them. When they call the hawks addressing them by name, the hawks swoop down on the birds. The small birds fly in terror into the bushes, where the boys catch them by knocking them down with sticks; in case the hawks themselves catch any of the birds, they throw them down to the hunters. When the hunting finishes, the hunters give a portion of all that is caught to the hawks.^[49] He also wrote that in the city of Cedripolis (Κεδρίπολις), men and hawks jointly hunt small birds. The men drive them away with sticks, while the hawks pursue closely, and the small birds in their flight fall into the clutches of the men. Because of this, they share their prey with the hawks.^[50]
• Third century BC – Antigonus of Carystus wrote the same story about the city of Cedripolis.^[51]
• 355 AD – Nihon-shoki, a largely mythical narrative, records hawking first arriving in Japan from Baekje as of the 16th emperor Nintoku.
• Second–fourth century – the Germanic tribe of the Goths learned falconry from the Sarmatians.
• Fifth century – the son of Avitus, Roman Emperor 455–56, from the Celtic tribe of the Arverni, who fought at the Battle of Châlons with the Goths against the Huns, introduced falconry in Rome.
• 500 – a Roman floor mosaic in Argos, Peloponnese depicts a falconer and his hawk hunting ducks.
• Early seventh century – Prey caught by trained dogs or falcons is considered halal in Quran.^[52] By this time, falconry was already popular in the Arabian Peninsula.
• 818 – Japanese Emperor Saga ordered someone to edit a falconry text named Shinshuu Youkyou.
• 875 – Western Europe and Saxon England practiced falconry widely.
• 991 – In the poem The Battle of Maldon describing the Battle of Maldon in Essex, before the battle, the Anglo-Saxons' leader Byrhtnoth says, "let his tame hawk fly from his hand to the wood".
• 1070s – The Bayeux Tapestry shows King Harold of England with a hawk in one scene. The king is said to have owned the largest collection of books on the sport in all of Europe.
• Around 1182 – Niketas Choniates wrote about hawks that are trained to hunt at the Byzantine Empire.^[53]
• Around the 1240s – The treatise of an Arab falconer, Moamyn, was translated into Latin by Master Theodore of Antioch, at the court of Frederick II, it was called De Scientia Venandi per Aves and much copied.
• 1250 – Frederick II wrote in the last years of his life a treatise on the art of hunting with birds: De arte venandi cum avibus.
• 1285 – The Baz-Nama-yi Nasiri, a Persian treatise on falconry, was compiled by Taymur Mirza, an English translation of which was produced in 1908 by D. C. Phillott.^[54]
• 1325 – The Libro de la caza, by the prince of Villena, Don Juan Manuel, includes a detailed description of the best hunting places for falconry in the kingdom of Castile.
• 1390s – In his Libro de la caza de las aves, Castilian poet and chronicler Pero López de Ayala attempts to compile all the available correct knowledge concerning falconry.
• 1486 – See the Boke of Saint Albans
• Early 16th century – Japanese warlord Asakura Norikage (1476–1555) succeeded in captive breeding of Eurasian goshawks.
• 1580s – Spanish drawings of Sambal people recorded in the Boxer Codex showed a culture of falconry in the Philippines.
• 1600s – In Dutch records of falconry, the town of Valkenswaard was almost entirely dependent on falconry for its economy.
• 1660s – Tsar Alexis of Russia writes a treatise that celebrates aesthetic pleasures derived from falconry.
• 1801 – Joseph Strutt of England writes, "the ladies not only accompanied the gentlemen in pursuit of the diversion [falconry], but often practiced it by themselves; and even excelled the men in knowledge and exercise of the art."
• 1864 – The Old Hawking Club is formed in Great Britain.
• 1921 – Deutscher Falkenorden is founded in Germany. Today, it is the largest and oldest falconry club in Europe.
• 1927 – The British Falconers' Club is founded by the surviving members of the Old Hawking Club.
• 1934 – The first US falconry club, the Peregrine Club of Philadelphia, is formed; it became inactive during World War II and was reconstituted in 2013 by Dwight A. Lasure of Pennsylvania.
• 1941 – Falconer's Club of America formed
• 1961 – Falconer's Club of America was defunct
• 1961 – North American Falconers Association formed
• 1968 – International Association for Falconry and Conservation of Birds of Prey formed^[55]
• 1970 – Peregrine falcons were listed as an endangered species in the U.S., due primarily to the use of DDT as a pesticide (35 Federal Register 8495; June 2, 1970).
• 1970 – The Peregrine Fund is founded, mostly by falconers, to conserve raptors, and focusing on peregrine falcons.
• 1972 – DDT banned in the U.S. (EPA press release – December 31, 1972) but continues to be used in Mexico and other nations.
• 1999 – Peregrine falcon removed from the Endangered Species List in the United States, due to reports that at least 1,650 peregrine breeding pairs existed in the U.S. and Canada at that time. (64 Federal Register 46541-558, August 25, 1999)
• 2003 – A population study by the USFWS shows peregrine falcon numbers climbing ever more rapidly, with well over 3000 pairs in North America

  

• 2006 – A population study by the USFWS shows peregrine falcon numbers still climbing. (Federal Register circa September 2006)
• 2008 – USFWS rewrites falconry regulations virtually eliminating federal involvement. Federal Register: October 8, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 196)
• 2010 – Falconry is added to the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)^[21][56]

Medieval Normans distinguished falconry from the sport of 'hawking'.^{[citation needed]} Normans practiced falconry by horseback and 'hawking' by foot.^{[citation needed]} An immediate impact of the Norman Conquest of England was a penchant for falconry enjoyed by Norman nobility.^{[citation needed]} So much so, in fact, that they outlawed commoners from hunting particular lands so that nobility could freely enjoy both sports.^{[citation needed]} Both falconry and 'hawking' were central to Norman cultural identity in medieval times.^{[citation needed]} Normans transported their falcons on a frame called a cadge.^{[citation needed]}

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The often-quoted Book of Saint Albans or Boke of St Albans, first printed in 1486, often attributed to Dame Juliana Berners, provides this hierarchy of hawks and the social ranks for which each bird was supposedly appropriate.

1. Emperor: Eagle, vulture, and merlin
2. King: gyrfalcon and the tercel of the gyrfalcon
3. Prince: falcon gentle and the tercel gentle
4. Duke: falcon of the loch
5. Earl: Peregrine falcon
6. Baron: bustard
7. Knight: sacre and the sacret
8. Esquire: lanere and the laneret
9. Lady: marlyon
10. Young man: hobby
11. Yeoman: goshawk
12. Poor man: tercel
13. Priest: sparrowhawk
14. Holy water clerk: musket
15. Knave or servant: kestrel

This list, however, was mistaken in several respects.

• 1) Vultures are not used for falconry.
• 3) 4) 5) These are usually said to be different names for the peregrine falcon. But there is an opinion that renders 4) as "rock falcon" = a peregrine from remote rocky areas, which would be bigger and stronger than other peregrines. This could also refer to the Scottish peregrine.
• 6) The bustard is not a bird of prey, but a game species that was commonly hunted by falconers; this entry may have been a mistake for buzzard, or for busard which is French for "harrier"; but any of these would be a poor deal for barons; some treat this entry as "bastard hawk", possibly meaning a hawk of unknown lineage, or a hawk that could not be identified.
• 7) Sakers were imported from abroad and very expensive, and ordinary knights and squires would be unlikely to have them.
• 8) Contemporary records have lanners as native to England.
• 10) 15) Hobbies and kestrels are historically considered to be of little use for serious falconry (the French name for the hobby is faucon hobereau, hobereau meaning local/country squire. That may be the source of the confusion), however King Edward I of England sent a falconer to catch hobbies for his use. Kestrels are coming into their own as worthy hunting birds, as modern falconers dedicate more time to their specific style of hunting. While not suitable for catching game for the falconer's table, kestrels are certainly capable of catching enough quarry that they can be fed on surplus kills through the moult.
• 12) An opinion^[57] holds that since the previous entry is the goshawk, this entry ("Ther is a Tercell. And that is for the powere [= poor] man.") means a male goshawk and that here "poor man" means not a labourer or beggar, but someone at the bottom of the scale of landowners.

The relevance of the "Boke" to practical falconry past or present is extremely tenuous, and veteran British falconer Phillip Glasier dismissed it as "merely a formalised and rather fanciful listing of birds".

A book about falconry published in 1973^[58] says:

• Most falconry birds used in Britain were taken from the wild, either in Britain, or taken abroad and then imported.
• Captive breeding was initiated. The book mentions a captive-bred goshawk and a brood of captive-bred red-tailed hawks. It describes as a new and remarkable event captive breeding hybrid young in 1971 and 1972 from John Morris's female saker and Ronald Stevens's peregrine falcon.
• Peregrine falcons were suffering from the post–World War II severe decline caused by pesticides. Taking wild peregrines in Britain was only allowed to train them to keep birds off Royal Air Force airfields to prevent bird strikes.
• The book does not mention telemetry.
• Harris's hawks were known to falconers but unusual. For example, the book lists a falconry meet on four days in August 1971 at White Hill and Leafield in Dumfriesshire in Scotland; the hawks flown were 11 goshawks and one Harris's hawk. The book felt it necessary to say what a Harris's hawk is.
• The usual species for a beginner was a kestrel.
• A few falconers used golden eagles.
• Falcons in falconry would have bells on their legs so the hunters could find them. If the bells fell off the falcon, the hunter would not be able to find his bird easily. The bird usually died if it could not find a way to remove the leather binding on its feet.

Falconry, a living human heritage
UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage
Country	Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czechia, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Morocco, Netherlands, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia, South Korea, Spain, Syria, and the United Arab Emirates
Reference	01708
Inscription history
Inscription	2021 (16th session)
List	Representative

In 2010, UNESCO inscribed falconry on its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity upon the nomination of eleven countries in which it is an important element of their culture: Belgium, the Czech Republic, France, South Korea, Mongolia, Morocco, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Syria, and the United Arab Emirates. Austria and Hungary were added in 2012; Germany, Italy, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, and Portugal were added in 2016; and Croatia, Ireland, Kyrgyzstan, the Netherlands, Poland, and Slovakia were added in 2021. Nominated by a total of twenty-four countries, falconry is the largest multi-national element on the Representative List.^[59]

In their rationale for inscription on the list, the nominators highlighted that "Originally a means of obtaining food, falconry has acquired other values over time and has been integrated into communities as a social and recreational practice and as a way of connecting with nature. Today, falconry is practised by people of all ages in many countries. As an important cultural symbol in many of those countries, it is transmitted from generation to generation through a variety of means, including through mentoring, within families or in training clubs".^[59]

• In historic literature of Mongols, The Secret History of Mongol is one of earliest books that described Bodonchar Munkhag, first leader of the Borjigan tribe as having first caught a falcon and fed it until spring. Through falconry, he not only survived, but also made it his tribal custom. His eighth-generation descendant Esukhei Baatar (hereo) was also in falconry, and he was the father of Genghis Khan. Through Genghis Khan's Great Mongol empire, this custom was introduced to China, Korea, Japan, and Europe, as well as the Western Asia.
• In the Tale XXXIII of the Tales of Count Lucanor by the prince of Villena, Lo que sucedió a un halcón sacre del infante don Manuel con una garza y un águila, the tale tries to teach a moral based on a story about falconry lived by the father of the author.
• In the ninth novel of the fifth day of Giovanni Boccaccio's The Decameron, a medieval collection of novellas, a falcon is central to the plot: Nobleman Federigo degli Alberighi has wasted his fortune courting his unrequited love until nothing is left but his brave falcon. When his lady comes to see him, he gives her the falcon to eat. Knowing his case, she changes her mind, marries him, and makes him rich.
• Famous explorer Sir Richard Francis Burton wrote an account of falconry in India, Falconry in the Valley of the Indus, first published in 1852 and now available in modern reprints.
• A 17th-century English physician-philosopher, Sir Thomas Browne, wrote a short essay on falconry.^[60]
• T.H. White was a falconer and wrote The Goshawk about his attempt to train a hawk in the traditional art of falconry. Falconry is also featured and discussed in The Once and Future King.
• In Virginia Henley's historical romance books, The Falcon and the Flower, The Dragon and the Jewel, The Marriage Prize, The Border Hostage, and Infamous, numerous mentions to the art of falconry are made, as these books are set at dates ranging from the 1150s to the 16th century.
• The main character, Sam Gribley, in the children's novel My Side of the Mountain, is a falconer. His trained falcon is named Frightful.
• William Bayer's novel Peregrine set in the world of falconry, about a rogue peregrine falcon in New York City, won the 1982 Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Mystery.
• Actress Stana Katic, known for her role as Kate Beckett in Castle, enjoys falconry in her spare time.^[61] She has said that "It gives me self-respect."
• In the book and movie The Falcon and the Snowman about two Americans who sold secrets to the Soviets, one of the two main characters, Christopher Boyce, is a falconer.
• In The Royal Tenenbaums, Richie keeps a falcon named Mordecai on the roof of his home in Brooklyn.
• In James Clavell's Shōgun, Toranaga, one of the main characters, practices falconry throughout the book, often during or immediately before or after important plot events. His thoughts also reveal an analogy between his falconry and his use of other characters towards his ends.
• The 1985 film Ladyhawke involved a medieval warrior who carried a red-tailed hawk as a pet, but in truth, the hawk was actually his lover, who had been cursed by an evil bishop to keep the two apart.
• In The Dark Tower series, the main character, Roland, uses a hawk named David, to win a trial by combat to become a Gunslinger.
• "The Falconer" is a recurring sketch on Saturday Night Live, featuring Will Forte as a falconer who constantly finds himself in mortal peril and must rely on his loyal falcon, Donald, to rescue him.
• Gabriel García Márquez's novel Chronicle of a Death Foretold's main character, Santiago Nasar, and his father are falconers.
• Hodgesaargh is a falconer based in Lancre Castle in Terry Pratchett's Discworld books. He is an expert and dedicated falconer who unluckily seems to only keep birds that enjoy attacking him.
• Fantasy author Mercedes Lackey is a falconer and often adds birds of prey to her novels. Among the Tayledras or Hawkbrother race in her Chronicles of Valdemar, everyone bonds with a specially bred raptor called a bondbird, which has limited powers of speech mind-to-mind and can scout and hunt for its human bondmate.
• Crime novelist Andy Straka is a falconer and his Frank Pavlicek private eye series features a former NYPD homicide detective and falconer as protagonist. The books include A Witness Above, A Killing Sky, Cold Quarry (2001, 2002, 2003), and Kitty Hitter (2009).
• In Irish poet William Butler Yeats's poem, "The Second Coming", Yeats uses the image of "The falcon cannot hear the falconer" as a metaphor for social disintegration.
• American poet Robert Duncan's poem "My Mother Would Be a Falconress"^[62]
• The comic book Gold Ring by Qais M. Sedki and Akira Himekawa features falconers and falcons.
• The Marvel Comics character Falcon is both named after the animal, but is a falconer himself, fighting crime with his falcon Redwing.
• C. J. Box's Joe Pickett series of novels has a recurring character, Nate Romanowski, who is a falconer.
• A Kestrel for a Knave is a novel by British author Barry Hines, published in 1968. It is set in Barnsley, South Yorkshire, and tells of Billy Casper, a young working-class boy troubled at home and at school, who only finds solace when he finds and trains a kestrel, which he names "Kes". The film made from the book in 1969 by Ken Loach is also called Kes. Barry Hines was inspired by his younger brother Richard, who like Billy Casper, took kestrels from the wild and trained them. (He trained the three hawks used in the film Kes.) He has written of this in his memoir No Way But Gentleness: A Memoir of How Kes, My Kestrel, Changed My Life (Bloomsbury, 2016).
• In the book Flight of the Dragon Kyn by Susan Fletcher, the protagonist helps train an arctic gyrfalcon as she befriends the king's falconer.
• H is for Hawk (Vintage, 2015) by Helen Macdonald, which won the Samuel Johnson Prize and Costa Book of the Year prizes in 2014, tells of how she trained a goshawk and mourned her father in the same year. It has echoes of T.H. White's The Goshawk.
• Dragonheart features Brok, the brutal knight for the iron fisted King Einon, who proved a capable falconer and owns a falcon.
• On The Mummy Returns, Ardeth Bay proved a capable falconer and owned a saker falcon named after the Egyptian god Horus. Sadly, while delivering a message, Horus was shot to death by Lock-Nah with a rifle.
• Avatar: The Last Airbender featured falconry, involving many using messenger hawks to deliver messages. The assassin Combustion Man utilized a raven eagle to intercept a messenger hawk carrying information about Aang's whereabouts, keeping Aang's survival after the coup in Ba Sing Se a secret.

These English language words and idioms are derived from falconry:

Expression	Meaning in falconry	Derived meaning
Haggard[63]	Of a hawk, caught from the wild when adult	Looking exhausted and unwell, in poor condition; wild or untamed
Lure[64]	Originally a device used to recall hawks. The hawks, when young, were trained to associate the device (usually a bunch of feathers) with food.	To tempt with a promise/reward/bait
Rouse[65]	To shake one's feathers	Stir or awaken
Pounce[66]	Referring to a hawk's claws, later derived to refer to birds springing or swooping to catch prey	Jump forward to seize or attack something
To turn tail[67]	Fly away	To turn and run away

• Abu Dhabi Falcon Hospital
• Animal training
• Anti-hunting
• Car hawking
• Falconer's knot
• Falconry training and technique
• Hack (falconry)
• Hunting
• Hunting dog
• Hunting with eagles
• Jess (falconry)
• Parahawking
• Puppet-rearing
• Takagari
• Ferreting

• Ash, Lydia, Modern Apprentice: site for North Americans interested in falconry. Much information for this entry was due to her research.
• Beebe, FL; Webster, HM (2000), North American Falconry and Hunting Hawks (8th ed.), North American Falconry and Hunting Hawks, ISBN 0-685-66290-X.
• Chenu, Jean Charles; Des Murs, Marc Athanase Parfait Œillet (1862). La fauconnerie, ancienne et moderne. Paris: Librairie L. Hachette et Cie.
• Chiorino, G. E. (1906). Il Manuale del moderno Falconiere. Milan: Ulrico Hoepli.
• Fernandes Ferreira (b. 1546), Diogo; Cordeiro (1844–1900), Luciano (1899). Arte da caça de altaneria. Lisbon: Lisboa Escriptorio.cite book: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
• Freeman, Gage Earle; Salvin, Francis Henry (1859). Falconry : Its Claims, History and Practice. London: Longman, Green, Longman and Roberts.
• Freeman, Gage Earle (1869). Practical falconry – to which is added, How I became a falconer. London: Horace Cox.
• Fuertes, Louis Agassiz; Wetmore, Alexander (1920). "Falconry, the sport of kings". National Geographic Magazine. 38 (6).
• García, Beatriz E. Candil; Hartman, Arjen E (2007), Ars Accipitraria: An Essential Dictionary for the Practice of Falconry and hawking, London: Yarak, ISBN 978-0-9555607-0-5 (the excerpt on the language of falconry comes from this book).
• ——— (2008), The Red-tailed Hawk: The Great Unknown, London: Yarak, ISBN 978-0-9555607-4-3.
• Harting, James Edmund (1891). Bibliotheca Accipitraria: A Catalogue of Books Ancient and Modern Relating to Falconry, with notes, glossary and vocabulary. London: Bernard Quaritch.
• López de Ayala (1332–1407), Pedro; de la Cueva, duque de Albuquerque (d. 1492), Beltrán; de Gayangos (1809–1897), Pascual; Lafuente y Alcántara, Emilio (1869). El libro de las aves de caça. Madrid: M. Galiano.cite book: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
• Latini (1220–1295), Brunetto; Bono (c. 1240 – c. 1292), Giamboni (1851). de Mortara, Alessandro (ed.). Scritture antiche toscane di falconeria ed alcuni capitoli nell' originale francese del Tesoro di Brunetto Latini sopra la stessa materia. Prato: Tipografia F. Alberghetti e C.cite book: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
• Phillott, Douglas Craven; al-Dawlah Timur Mirza, Husam (1908). The Baz-nama-yi Nasiri, a Persian treatise on falconry. London: Bernard Quaritch.
• Riesenthal, Oskar von (1876). Die Raubvögel Deutschlands und des angrenzenden Mitteleuropas; Darstellung und Beschreibung der in Deutschland und den benachbarten Ländern von Mitteleuropa vorkommenden Raubvögel. Cassel, Germany: Verlag von Theodor Fischer.
• Deva, Raja of Kumaon, Rudra; Shastri (tr.), Hara Prasad (1910). Syanika satra: or a book on hawking. Calcutta: Asiatic Society.
• Soma, Takuya. 2012. ‘Contemporary Falconry in Altai-Kazakh in Western Mongolia’The International Journal of Intangible Heritage (vol.7), pp. 103–111. [1] Archived 2017-06-21 at the Wayback Machine
• Soma, Takuya. 2013. 'Ethnographic Study of Altaic Kazakh Falconers', Falco: The Newsletter of the Middle East Falcon Research Group 41, pp. 10–14. [2]

• IAF – International Association for Falconry and Conservation of Birds of Prey.

 

 

A hot air balloon is a lighter-than-air aircraft consisting of a bag, called an envelope, which contains heated air. Suspended beneath is a gondola or wicker basket (in some long-distance or high-altitude balloons, a capsule), which carries passengers and a source of heat, in most cases an open flame caused by burning liquid propane. The heated air inside the envelope makes it buoyant, since it has a lower density than the colder air outside the envelope. As with all aircraft, hot air balloons cannot fly beyond the atmosphere. The envelope does not have to be sealed at the bottom, since the air inside the envelope is at about the same pressure as the surrounding air. In modern sport balloons the envelope is generally made from nylon fabric, and the inlet of the balloon (closest to the burner flame) is made from a fire-resistant material such as Nomex. Modern balloons have been made in many shapes, such as rocket ships and the shapes of various commercial products, though the traditional shape is used for most non-commercial and many commercial applications.

The hot air balloon is the first successful human-carrying flight technology. The first untethered manned hot air balloon flight in the world was performed in Paris, France, by Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier and François Laurent d'Arlandes on November 21, 1783,^[1] in a balloon created by the Montgolfier brothers.^[2] Hot air balloons that can be propelled through the air rather than simply drifting with the wind are known as thermal airships.

A precursor of the hot air balloon was the sky lantern (simplified Chinese: 孔明灯; traditional Chinese: 孔明燈). Zhuge Liang of the Shu Han kingdom, during the Three Kingdoms era (220–280 CE), used these airborne lanterns for military signaling.^[3] The Mongolian army studied Kongming lanterns from China and used them in the Battle of Legnica during the Mongol invasion of Poland in the 13th century.^[4] This is the first time ballooning was known in the western world.

In the 18th century the Portuguese Jesuit priest Bartolomeu de Gusmão in colonial Brazil envisioned an aerial apparatus named Passarola, which was the predecessor of the hot air balloon. The Passarola was intended to serve as an air vessel in order to facilitate communication and as a strategical device.^[5] In 1709 John V of Portugal decided to fund Bartolomeu de Gusmão's project following a petition made by the Jesuit priest,^[6] and an unmanned demonstration was performed at Casa da Índia in the presence of John V and the queen, Maria Anna of Austria, with the Italian cardinal Michelangelo Conti, two members of the Portuguese Royal Academy of History, one Portuguese diplomat and one chronicler serving as witnesses. This event would bring some European attention to this event and this project. A later article dated on October 20, 1786, by the London Daily Universal Register would state that the inventor was able to raise himself by the use of his prototype. Also in 1709, the Portuguese Jesuit wrote Manifesto summário para os que ignoram poderse navegar pelo elemento do ar (Short Manifesto for those who are unaware that is possible to sail through the element air); he also left designs for a manned air vessel.

In the 1970s, balloonist Julian Nott hypothesized that the Nazca Lines geoglyphs' creation two millennia ago could have been guided by Nazca leaders in a balloon, possibly the earliest hot air balloon flights in human history.^[7] To support this theory, in 1975 he designed and piloted the Nazca Prehistoric Balloon, claiming to have used only methods and materials available to the Pre-Inca Peruvians 1,000 years ago.^[8][9]

The French brothers Joseph-Michel and Jacques-Étienne Montgolfier developed a hot-air balloon in Annonay, Ardèche, France, and demonstrated it publicly on September 19, 1783, making an unmanned flight lasting 10 minutes. After experimenting with unmanned balloons and flights with animals, the first balloon flight with humans aboard, a tethered flight, performed on or around October 15, 1783, by Jean-Francois Pilatre de Rozier, who made at least one tethered flight from the yard of the Reveillon workshop in the Faubourg Saint-Antoine. Later that same day, Pilatre de Rozier became the second human to ascend into the air, reaching an altitude of 26 m (85 ft), the length of the tether.^[10][11] The first free flight with human passengers was made a few weeks later, on November 21, 1783.^[2] King Louis XVI had originally decreed that condemned criminals would be the first pilots, but de Rozier, along with Marquis François d'Arlandes, petitioned successfully for the honor.^[12][13][14] The first military use of a hot air balloon happened in 1794 during the battle of Fleurus, when the French used the balloon l'Entreprenant for observation.^[15]

Modern hot air balloons, with an onboard heat source, were developed by Ed Yost and Jim Winker, beginning during the 1950s; their work resulted in his a first successful flight on October 22, 1960.^[16] The first modern hot air balloon to be made in the United Kingdom (UK) was the Bristol Belle, built in 1967. Presently, hot air balloons are used primarily for recreation.

On November 26, 2005 Vijaypat Singhania set the world altitude record for highest hot air balloon flight, reaching 21,027 m (68,986 ft). He took off from downtown Mumbai, India, and landed 240 km (150 mi) south in Panchale.^[17]

The previous record of 19,811 m (64,997 ft) had been set by Per Lindstrand on June 6, 1988, in Plano, Texas.

On January 15, 1991, Per Lindstrand (born in Sweden, but resident in the UK) and Richard Branson of the UK flew 7,671.91 km (4,767.10 mi) from Japan to Northern Canada in the “Virgin Pacific Flyer”. With a volume of 74,000 cubic meters (2.6 million cubic feet), the balloon envelope was the largest ever built for a hot air craft. Designed to fly in the trans-oceanic jet streams, the Pacific Flyer recorded the fastest ground speed for a manned balloon at 394 km/h (245 mph).

The longest duration record was set by Swiss psychiatrist Bertrand Piccard (Auguste Piccard's grandson) and Briton Brian Jones, flying in the Breitling Orbiter 3. It was the first nonstop trip around the world by balloon. The balloon left Château-d'Oex, Switzerland, on March 1, 1999, and landed at 1:02 a.m. on March 21 in the Egyptian desert 500 km (300 mi) south of Cairo. The two men exceeded distance, endurance, and time records, traveling 19 days, 21 hours, and 55 minutes.

Steve Fossett, flying solo, exceeded the record for briefest time traveling around the world on 3 July 2002 on his sixth attempt,^[18] in 320 h 33 min.^[19] Fedor Konyukhov flew solo round the world on his first attempt in a hybrid hot air/helium balloon from 11 to 23 July 2016^[20] for a round-the world time of 268 h 20 min.^[19]

A hot air balloon for manned flight uses a single-layered, fabric gas bag (lifting "envelope"), with an opening at the bottom called the mouth or throat. Attached to the envelope is a basket, or gondola, for carrying the passengers. Mounted above the basket and centered in the mouth is the "burner", which injects a flame into the envelope, heating the air within. The heater or burner is fueled by propane, a liquefied gas stored in pressure vessels, similar to high-pressure forklift cylinders.^[21][22]

Modern hot air balloons are usually made of materials such as ripstop nylon or dacron (a polyester).^[23]

During the manufacturing process, the material is cut into panels and sewn together, along with structural load tapes that carry the weight of the gondola or basket. The individual sections, which extend from the throat to the crown (top) of the envelope, are known as gores or gore sections. Envelopes can have as few as 4 gores or as many as 24 or more.^[24]

Envelopes often have a crown ring at their very top. This is a hoop of smooth metal, usually aluminium, and approximately 30 cm (1 ft) in diameter. Vertical load tapes from the envelope are attached to the crown ring.

At the bottom of the envelope the vertical load tapes are sewn into loops that are connected to cables (one cable per load tape). These cables, often referred to as flying wires, are connected to the basket by carabiners.

The most common technique for sewing panels together is called the French felled, French fell, or double lap seam.^{[25][26][27][28]} The two pieces of fabric are folded over on each other at their common edge, possibly with a load tape as well, and sewn together with two rows of parallel stitching. Other methods include a flat lap seam, in which the two pieces of fabric are held together simply with two rows of parallel stitching, and a zigzag, where parallel zigzag stitching holds a double lap of fabric.^[27]

The fabric (or at least part of it, the top 1/3, for example) may be coated with a sealer, such as silicone or polyurethane, to make it impermeable to air.^[29] It is often the degradation of this coating and the corresponding loss of impermeability that ends the effective life of an envelope, not weakening of the fabric itself. Heat, moisture, and mechanical wear-and-tear during set-up and pack-up are the primary causes of degradation. Once an envelope becomes too porous to fly, it may be retired and discarded or perhaps used as a "rag bag": cold-inflated and opened for children to run through. Products for recoating the fabric are becoming available commercially.^[30]

A range of envelope sizes is available. The smallest, one-person, basket-less balloons (called "Hoppers" or "Cloudhoppers") have as little as 600 m³ (21,000 cu ft) of envelope volume;^[31] for a perfect sphere the radius would be around 5 m (16 ft). At the other end of the scale, balloons used by commercial sightseeing operations may be able to carry well over two dozen people, with envelope volumes of up to 17,000 m³ (600,000 cu ft).^[31] The most-used size is about 2,800 m³ (99,000 cu ft), allowing to carry 3 to 5 people.

The top of the balloon usually has a vent of some sort, enabling the pilot to release hot air to slow an ascent, start a descent, or increase the rate of descent, usually for landing. Some hot air balloons have turning vents, which are side vents that, when opened, cause the balloon to rotate. Such vents are particularly useful for balloons with rectangular baskets, to facilitate aligning the wider side of the basket for landing.^[32]

The most common type of top vent is a disk-shaped flap of fabric called a parachute vent, invented by Tracy Barnes.^[33] The fabric is connected around its edge to a set of "vent lines" that converge in the center. (The arrangement of fabric and lines roughly resembles a parachute—thus the name.) These "vent lines" are themselves connected to a control line that runs to the basket. A parachute vent is opened by pulling on the control line. Once the control line is released, the pressure of the remaining hot air pushes the vent fabric back into place. A parachute vent can be opened briefly while in flight to initiate a rapid descent. (Slower descents are initiated by allowing the air in the balloon to cool naturally.) The vent is pulled open completely to collapse the balloon after landing.

An older, and presently less commonly used, style of top vent is called a "Velcro-style" vent. This too is a disk of fabric at the top of the balloon. However, rather than having a set of "vent lines" that can repeatedly open and close the vent, the vent is secured by "hook and loop" fasteners (such as Velcro) and is only opened at the end of the flight. Balloons equipped with a Velcro-style vent typically have a second "maneuvering vent" built into the side (as opposed to the top) of the balloon. Another common type of top design is the "smart vent", which, rather than lowering a fabric disc into the envelope as in the "parachute" type, gathers the fabric together in the center of the opening. This system can theoretically be used for in-flight maneuvering, but is more commonly used only as a rapid-deflation device for use after landing, of particular value in high winds. Other designs, such as the "pop top" and "MultiVent" systems, have also attempted to address the need for rapid deflation on landing, but the parachute top remains popular as an all-around maneuvering and deflation system.

Besides special shapes, possibly for marketing purposes, there are several variations on the traditional "inverted tear drop" shape. The simplest, often used by home builders, is a hemisphere on top of a truncated cone. More sophisticated designs attempt to minimize the circumferential stress on the fabric, with different degrees of success depending on whether they take fabric weight and varying air density into account. This shape may be referred to as "natural".^[34] Finally, some specialized balloons are designed to minimize aerodynamic drag (in the vertical direction) to improve flight performance in competitions.^[35]

Hot air balloon baskets are commonly made of woven wicker or rattan. These materials have proven to be sufficiently light, strong, and durable for balloon flight. Such baskets are usually rectangular or triangular in shape. They vary in size from just big enough for two people to large enough to carry thirty.^[36] Larger baskets often have internal partitions for structural bracing and to compartmentalize the passengers. Small holes may be woven into the side of the basket to act as foot holds for passengers climbing in or out.^[37]

Baskets may also be made of aluminium, especially a collapsible aluminium frame with a fabric skin, to reduce weight or increase portability.^[38] These may be used by pilots without a ground crew or who are attempting to set altitude, duration, or distance records. Other specialty baskets include the fully enclosed gondolas used for around-the-world attempts^[39] and baskets that consist of little more than a seat for the pilot and perhaps one passenger.

The burner unit gasifies liquid propane,^[40] mixes it with air, ignites the mixture, and directs the flame and exhaust into the mouth of the envelope. Burners vary in power output; each will generally produce 2 to 3 MW of heat (7 to 10 million BTUs per hour), with double, triple, or quadruple burner configurations installed where more power is needed.^[41][42] The pilot actuates a burner by opening a propane valve, known as a blast valve. The valve may be spring-loaded, so that it closes automatically, or it may stay open until closed by the pilot. The burner has a pilot light to ignite the propane and air mixture. The pilot light may be lit by the pilot with an external device, such as a flint striker or a lighter, or with a built-in piezoelectric spark.^[43]

Where more than one burner is present, the pilot can use one or more at a time, depending on the desired heat output. Each burner has a metal coil of propane tubing the flame shoots through to preheat the incoming liquid propane. The burner unit may be suspended from the mouth of the envelope or supported rigidly over the basket. The burner unit may be mounted on a gimbal to enable the pilot to aim the flame and avoid overheating the envelope fabric. A burner may have a secondary propane valve that releases propane more slowly and thereby generates a different sound. This is called a whisper burner and is used for flight over livestock to lessen the chance of spooking them. It also generates a more yellow flame and is used for night glows because it lights up the inside of the envelope better than the primary valve.

Propane fuel tanks are usually cylindrical pressure vessels made from aluminium, stainless steel, or titanium with a valve at one end to feed the burner and to refuel. They may have a fuel gauge and a pressure gauge. Common tank sizes are 38, 57 and 76 litres (10, 15 and 20 US gallons).^[29] They may be intended for upright or horizontal use and may be mounted inside or outside the basket.

The pressure necessary to force the fuel through the line to the burner may be supplied by the vapor pressure of the propane itself, if warm enough, or by the introduction of an inert gas such as nitrogen.^[43] Tanks may be preheated with electrical heat tapes to produce sufficient vapor pressure for cold-weather flying.^[44] Warmed tanks are usually also wrapped in an insulating blanket to preserve heat during the setup and flight.

A balloon may be outfitted with a variety of instruments to aid the pilot. These commonly include an altimeter, a rate-of-climb (vertical-speed) indicator known as a variometer, envelope (air) temperature, and ambient (air) temperature.^[45] A GPS receiver can be useful to indicate ground speed (traditional aircraft air-speed indicators would be useless) and direction.

The combined mass of an average system can be calculated as follows:^[29]

 

1.9%

 

0.7%

 

5.4%

 

10.0%

 

21.2%

 

78.8%

 

100.0%

Component	Pounds	Kilograms	Mass fraction
2,800 m3 (100,000 cu ft) envelope	250	113.4	3.3%
5-passenger basket	140	63.5
Double burner	50	22.7
3 76 L (20 US gal) fuel tanks full of propane	3 × 135 = 405	183.7
5 passengers	5 × 150 = 750	340.2
Subtotal	1595	723.5
2,800 m3 (100,000 cu ft) of heated air*	5922	2686.2
Total	(3.76 tons) 7517	3409.7

* Using a density of 0.9486 kg/m³ (0.05922 lb/cu ft) for dry air heated to 99 °C (210 °F).

Increasing the air temperature inside the envelope makes it less dense than the surrounding (ambient) air. The balloon floats because of the buoyant force exerted on it. This force is the same force that acts on objects when they are in water and is described by Archimedes' principle. The amount of lift (or buoyancy) provided by a hot air balloon depends primarily upon the difference between the temperature of the air inside the envelope and the temperature of the air outside the envelope. For most envelopes made of nylon fabric, the maximal internal temperature is limited to approximately 120 °C (250 °F).^[46]

The melting point of nylon is significantly greater than this maximal operating temperature—about 230 °C (450 °F)—but higher temperatures cause the strength of the nylon fabric to degrade more quickly over time. With a maximal operating temperature of 120 °C (250 °F), balloon envelopes can generally be flown for between 400 and 500 hours before the fabric needs to be replaced. Many balloon pilots operate their envelopes at temperatures significantly less than the maximum to extend envelope-fabric life.

The lift generated by 2,800 m³ (100,000 cu ft) of dry air heated to various temperatures may be calculated as follows:

Air temperature °C (°F)	Air density kg/m3 (lb/cu ft)	Air mass kg (lb)	Lift generated kg (lb)
20 (68)	1.2041 (0.07517)	3,409.7 (7,517)	0, (0)
99 (210)	0.9486 (0.05922)	2,686.2 (5,922)	723.5 (1,595)
120 (248)	0.8978 (0.05605)	2,542.4 (5,605)	867.3 (1,912)

The density of air at 20 °C (68 °F) is about 1.2 kg/m³ (0.075 lb/cu ft). The total lift for a balloon of 2,800 m³ (100,000 cu ft) heated to 99 °C (210 °F) would be 723.5 kg (1,595 lb). This is just enough to generate neutral buoyancy for the total system mass (not including the heated air trapped in the envelope, of course) stated in the previous section. Liftoff would require a slightly greater temperature, depending on the desired rate of climb. In reality, the air contained in the envelope is not all at the same temperature, as the accompanying thermal image shows, and so these calculations are based on averages.

For typical atmospheric conditions (20 °C or 68 °F), a hot air balloon heated to 99 °C (210 °F) requires about 3.91 m³ of envelope volume to lift 1 kilogram (equivalently, 62.5 cu ft/lb). The precise amount of lift provided depends not only upon the internal temperature mentioned above, but the external temperature, altitude above sea level, and humidity of the air surrounding. On a warm day, a balloon cannot lift as much as on a cool day, because the temperature required for launch will exceed the maximum sustainable for nylon envelope fabric. Also, in the lower atmosphere, the lift provided by a hot air balloon decreases about 3% per 1,000 m (1% per 1,000 ft) of altitude gained.^[47]

There are several different types of hot air balloons, all with different means of taking and sustaining flight.

Standard hot air balloons are known as Montgolfier balloons and rely solely on the buoyancy of hot air provided by the burner and contained by the envelope.^[48] This style of balloon was developed by the Montgolfier brothers and had its first public demonstration on 4 June 1783 with an unmanned flight lasting 10 minutes, followed later that year with manned flights.^[49]

Instead of using regular air it is also possible to use lighter than air gasses such as Helium or Hydrogen to lift the balloon,^[51] though this means it is technically not a hot air balloon, though they did influence the design of hybrid balloons.

The 1785 Rozière balloon, is the main type of hybrid balloon, named after its creator, Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier. It has a separate cell for a lighter-than-air gas (typically helium), as well as a cone below for hot air (as is used in a hot air balloon) to heat the helium at night. Hydrogen gas was used in the very early stages of development but was quickly abandoned due to the danger of introducing an open flame near the gas, for example when Rozier attempted to cross the English Channel with his prototype, the fire used to heat the air ignited the Hydrogen and killed both him and his copilot thirty minutes after takeoff.^[52] As such, all modern hybrid balloons now use helium as a lifting gas.^[53] These balloons are commonly used for high performance records for hot air balloons.

Solar balloons are hot air balloons that use just solar energy captured by an envelope. These envelopes are more specialized than for other hot air balloons, trying to maximize the amount of solar energy they collect. This can be accomplished by rotating the envelope during flight or by having the envelope colored black or another dark color.^[54] They were pioneered in the 1970s in Europe by Tracy Barnes, Dominic Michaelis, and in the US by Frederick Espoo and Paul Woessher.^[55]

A Thermal airship, or blimp, became a reality in the 1960s. Thermal airships were the first steerable air buoyant vehicles.^[56] They utilized tail fins and a rudder and contained strictly hot air rather than a mix with hydrogen or helium.^[56]

Observation balloons were deployed as early as the American Civil War and used as reconnaissance towers.^[57] The first military funded balloon in America was designed by Thaddeus Lowe on August 2, 1861, for the Union.^[57] His design utilized gas from municipal lines to inflate the balloon as he did not have access to a portable generator.^[57] Observation balloons during this time were all made using multicolored-silk, wicker baskets, and were vertically oriented and tear shaped.^[58] Hydrogen, or illumination gas became the most used inflation fuel by the 20th Century, as it was lighter than air.^[58] Observation balloon usage skyrocketed in Britain by the Royal Engineers at the end of the 19th Century, deploying to Sudan in 1885 and to South Africa during the Second Boer War from 1899 to 1902.^[59]

Due to the overall design of hot air balloons, controlled and precise steering of hot air balloons is not possible; it is possible for pilots to try to achieve basic directional control by changing altitude and catching different wind streams.^[60] Wind in the northern hemisphere tends to turn east due to coriolis effect as the altitude increases.

The most effective way of landing a hot air balloon is to reduce the energy in the envelope, either by turning down the flame in Montgolfier and Hybrid balloons, or more directly by opening a flap in the envelope that will release the air/gas inside.^[60]

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To help ensure the safety of pilot and passengers, a hot air balloon may carry several pieces of safety equipment.

To relight the burner if the pilot light goes out and the optional piezo ignition fails, the pilot should have ready access to a means of backup ignition, such as a flint spark lighter. Many systems, especially those that carry passengers, have completely duplicate fuel and burner systems: two fuel tanks, connected to two separate hoses, which feed two distinct burners. This enables a safe landing in the case of a blockage somewhere in one system or if a system must be disabled because of a fuel leak.

A fire extinguisher suitable for extinguishing propane fires is useful. Most balloons carry a 1 or 2 kg AB:E type fire extinguisher.^[61]

A handling or drop line is mandatory safety equipment in many countries. This is a rope or webbing of 20–30 meters in length attached to the balloon basket with a quick-release connection at one end. In very calm winds the balloon pilot can throw the handling line from the balloon so that the ground crew can guide the balloon safely away from obstructions on the ground.^[62]

For commercial passenger balloons, a pilot restraint harness is mandatory in some countries. This consists of a hip belt and a webbing line that together allow for some movement while preventing the pilot from being ejected from the basket during a hard landing.

Further safety equipment may include a first-aid kit, a fire blanket and a strong rescue knife.

At a minimum, the pilot should wear leather or flame-retardant fiber (such as nomex) gloves, so that they may shut off a gas valve in the case of a leak, even if there is a flame present; quick action in this regard can turn a potential catastrophe into a mere inconvenience. The pilot should additionally wear flame-resistant clothing covering their arms and legs; either natural fiber, such as cotton, linen, hemp, or wool, or engineered flame-retardant fiber, such as nomex, is acceptable in this capacity. Most engineered fibers (with the exception of rayon, which is also safe to wear) are thermoplastic; many are also hydrocarbons. This makes such fabrics very much unsuitable to wear near high temperatures, since non-flame-retardant thermoplastics will melt onto the wearer, and most hydrocarbons, whether fibrous or not, are suitable to use as fuels. Natural fiber will singe rather than melt or burn readily, and flame-retardant fiber generally has a very high melting point and is intrinsically non-flammable. Many pilots also advise their passengers to wear similar protective clothing that covers their arms and legs, as well as strong shoes or boots that offer good ankle support. Finally, some balloon systems, especially those that hang the burner from the envelope instead of supporting it rigidly from the basket, require the use of helmets by the pilot and passengers.

The ground crew should wear gloves whenever there is a possibility of handling ropes or lines. The mass and exposed surface to air movement of a medium-sized balloon is sufficient to cause rope friction burns to the hands of anyone trying to stop or prevent movement. The ground crew should also wear sturdy shoes and at least long pants in case of the need to access a landing or landed balloon in rough or overgrown terrain.

As with aircraft, hot air balloons require regular maintenance to remain airworthy. As aircraft made of fabric and that lack direct horizontal control, hot air balloons may occasionally require repairs to rips or snags. While some operations, such as cleaning and drying, may be performed by the owner or pilot, other operations, such as sewing, must be performed by a qualified repair technician and recorded in the balloon's maintenance log book.

To ensure long life and safe operation, the envelope should be kept clean and dry. This prevents mold and mildew from forming on the fabric and abrasion from occurring during packing, transport, and unpacking due to contact with foreign particles. In the event of a landing in a wet (because of precipitation or early morning or late evening dew) or muddy location (farmer's field), the envelope should be cleaned and laid out or hung to dry.

The burner and fuel system must also be kept clean to ensure safe operation on demand. Damaged fuel hoses need to be replaced. Stuck or leaky valves must be repaired or replaced. The wicker basket may require occasional refinishing or repair. The skids on its bottom may require occasional replacement.

Balloons in most parts of the world are maintained in accordance with a fixed manufacturer's maintenance schedule that includes regular (100 flight hours or 12 month) inspections, in addition to maintenance work to correct any damage. In Australia, balloons used for carrying commercial passengers must be inspected and maintained by approved workshops.^[63]

In the case of a snag, burn, or rip in the envelope fabric, a patch may be applied or the affected panel completely replaced. Patches may be held in place with glue, tape, stitching, or a combination of these techniques. Replacing an entire panel requires the stitching around the old panel to be removed, and a new panel to be sewn in with the appropriate technique, thread, and stitch pattern.

Depending on the size of the balloon, location, and intended use, hot air balloons and their pilots need to comply with a variety of regulations.

As with other aircraft in the US, balloons must be registered (have an N-number), have an airworthiness certificate, and pass annual inspections. Balloons below a certain size (empty weight of less than 155 pounds or 70 kg including envelope, basket, burners and empty fuel tanks) can be used as an ultralight aircraft.

In Australia, private balloon pilots are managed by the Australian Ballooning Federation^[64] and typically become members of regional hot air ballooning clubs. Commercial operations carrying fare paying passengers or charging for promotional flights must operate under an Air Operators Certificate from the Australian Civil Aviation and Safety Authority (CASA) with a nominated Chief Pilot. Pilots must have different degrees of experience before they are allowed to progress to larger balloons. Hot air balloons must be registered aircraft with CASA and are subject to regular airworthiness checks by authorised personnel.^[65]

In the UK, the person in command must hold a valid Private Pilot's Licence issued by the Civil Aviation Authority specifically for ballooning; this is known as the PPL(B). There are two types of commercial balloon licences: CPL(B) Restricted and CPL(B) (Full). The CPL(B) Restricted is required if the pilot is undertaking work for a sponsor or being paid by an external agent to operate a balloon. The pilot can fly a sponsored balloon with everything paid for with a PPL unless asked to attend any event. Then a CPL(B) Restricted is required. The CPL(B) is required if the pilot is flying passengers for money. The balloon then needs a transport category C of A (certificate of air worthiness). If the pilot is only flying sponsor's guests and not charging money for flying other passengers, then the pilot is exempted from holding an AOC (air operator's certificate) though a copy of it is required.^{[clarification needed]} For passenger flying the balloon also requires a maintenance log.

In the United States, a pilot of a hot air balloon must have a pilot certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), carrying the rating of "Lighter-than-air free balloon", and unless the pilot is also qualified to fly gas balloons, will also carry this limitation: "Limited to hot-air balloons with airborne heater". A pilot does not need a license to fly an ultralight aircraft, but training is highly advised, and some hot-air balloons meet the criteria.

To carry paying passengers for hire (and attend some balloon festivals), a pilot must have a commercial pilot certificate. Commercial hot air balloon pilots may also act as hot air balloon flight instructors. While most balloon pilots fly for the pure joy of floating through the air, many are able to make a living as a professional balloon pilot. Some professional pilots fly commercial passenger sightseeing flights, while others fly corporate advertising balloons.^[66]

• 1989 Alice Springs hot air balloon crash: On 13 August 1989, two hot air balloons collided at Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Australia, causing one to fall, killing all 13 people on board.
• 2011 Somerset hot air balloon crash: On 1 January 2011, a hot air balloon attempting a high-altitude flight crashed at Pratten's Bowls Club in Westfield, Somerset, near Bath, England, killing both people on board.
• 2012 Carterton hot air balloon crash: On 7 January 2012, a hot air balloon collided with a power line, caught fire and crashed at Carterton, North Island, New Zealand, killing all 11 people on board.
• 2012 Ljubljana Marshes hot air balloon crash: On 23 August 2012, a storm blew a hot air balloon to the ground, causing it to catch fire on impact near Ljubljana, Slovenia. The crash killed 6 of the 32 people on board, and injured the other 26.
• 2013 Luxor hot air balloon crash: On 26 February 2013, a hot air balloon carrying foreign tourists ignited and crashed near the ancient city of Luxor, Egypt, killing 19 of the 21 people on board, making it the deadliest balloon accident in history.^[67]
• 2016 Lockhart hot air balloon crash: On 30 July 2016, a hot air balloon carrying 16 people caught fire and crashed near Lockhart, Texas. There were no survivors.
• 2021 Albuquerque hot air balloon crash: On 26 June 2021, a hot air balloon carrying five people made contact with a power line and crashed in Albuquerque, New Mexico. All five people on board died as a result of the accident.
• On 14 January 2024, a hot air balloon crashed outside Eloy, Arizona,^[68] killing the three passengers and pilot. Eight skydivers had exited the balloon immediately prior to the incident.
• 2025 Santa Catarina hot air balloon crash: On 21 June 2025, a hot air balloon crashed after catching fire in Praia Grande, Santa Catarina, Brazil, killing 8 of the 21 people on board.^[69][70]

The largest manufacturer of hot air balloons is Cameron Balloons of Bristol, England, which also owns Lindstrand Balloons of Oswestry, England. Cameron Balloons, Lindstrand Balloons and another English balloon manufacturing company Thunder and Colt (since acquired by Cameron) have been innovators and developers of special shaped balloons. These hot-air balloons use the same principle of lift as conventional inverted teardrop-shaped balloons, but often sections of the special balloon envelope shape do not contribute to the balloon's ability to stay aloft.

The second largest manufacturer of hot air balloons is Ultramagic company, based in Spain, which produces from 80 to 120 balloons per year. Ultramagic can produce very large balloons, such as the N-500 that accommodates as many as 27 persons in the basket, and has also produced many balloons with special shapes, as well as cold-air inflatables.

One of the three largest companies in the world is Kubicek Balloons. From its factory in Brno, Czechia the company ships its products worldwide. Produces from 100 to 115 balloons per year. Kubicek company also focus on special shape balloons, FAA/EASA type certified and are delivered with a Standard Airworthiness Certificate.

In the USA Aerostar International, Inc. of Sioux Falls, South Dakota was North America's largest balloon manufacturer and a close second in world manufacturing before ceasing to build balloons in January 2007. The oldest U.S. certified manufacturer is now Adams Balloons out of Albuquerque, New Mexico. Firefly Balloons, formerly The Balloon Works, is a manufacturer of hot air balloons in Statesville, North Carolina. Another manufacturer is Head Balloons, Inc. of Helen, Georgia.

The major manufacturers in Canada are Sundance Balloons and Fantasy Sky Promotions. Other manufacturers include Kavanagh Balloons of Australia, Schroeder Fire Balloons of Germany, Kubicek Balloons of the Czech Republic, and LLopis Balloons of France.

• Needham, Joseph (1986). Science and Civilization in China: Volume 4, Physics and Physical Technology, Part 2, Mechanical Engineering. Taipei: Caves Books Ltd.

• Hot Air Balloon Web Links