London’s hot air balloon festival cancelled for fifth year in row due to weather conditions
Lord Mayor’s Hot Air Balloon Regatta was set to take place in the capital on Sunday
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.London’s highly anticipated hot air balloon festival has been cancelled for the fifth year in a row due to concerns over poor weather.
The Lord Mayor’s Hot Air Balloon Regatta was set to take place in the capital on Sunday – but it was cancelled for the fifth consecutive year, as well as for the second time this year after it was rescheduled from 7 July due to wind conditions.
Organisers hope the event, which was due to begin at 5am in Battersea Park, could now happen on 28 July instead, after the last successful one took place back in 2019.
The regatta is part of the historic Lord Mayor’s Show festivities, with 50 hot air balloons taking flight across central London to raise awareness and funds for the Lord Mayor’s Appeal. It has raised more than £250,000 since 2015.
The 2020 and 2021 events were stood down due to the coronavirus pandemic, while the 2022 and 2023 editions were cancelled due to weather conditions.
The organisers have now announced that wind conditions forced them to stand down the flight on Sunday morning, with the hopes of rescheduling to the following Sunday, which is the next of the several possible dates earmarked every year.
Writing on social media, they said: “Unfortunately the forecast change in wind direction has not materialised, and we have made the difficult decision to stand down the scheduled flight this morning for the safety of all teams on board.
“We appreciate the support from everyone involved, especially the public who have interacted with us and come out for the flight.
“We now roll to our next standby date of next Sunday, July 28th.”
Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, the Houses of Parliament, the Tower of London and Tower Bridge are among the landmarks the balloons are set to pass over this year, said organisers, adding that Lord Mayor Michael Mainelli is due to lead the event.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments