Gary Mortimer (born 1967 in

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, England) is a British journalist, balloonist, and drone aviator. He serves as editor of ''sUAS News,'' an unmanned aviation news website. He is a

hot air balloon 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 ...

pilot and current holder of the South African Hot Air Balloon Altitude record. The record was set on 9 May 2005, when he flew to an altitude of with DJ Lev David, on a flight in the KwaZulu-Natal region of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

. The flight took off from Estcourt Airfield, and the landing took place just outside Weenan. He lives in the KwaZulu Natal Midlands and works on projects involving Unmanned Aircraft Systems ( UAS). In 2010 with

Chris Anderson Chris Anderson may refer to: Sports * Chris Anderson (baseball) (born 1992), American baseball player * Chris Anderson (cheese roller), 22-time winner of annual cheese rolling * Chris Anderson (footballer, born 1925) (1925–1986), Scottish footb ...

, Mortimer created the T3 competition on the popular drone building website DIY Drones. He remains the chief judge for the competition. In July 2010, he was the first person to fly a fixed wing unmanned aircraft at the

Farnborough Airshow The Farnborough Airshow, officially the Farnborough International Airshow, is a trade exhibition for the aerospace and defence industries, where civilian and military aircraft are demonstrated to potential customers and investors. Since its fir ...

in Hampshire, England. He flew the Boomerang wing with an AttoPilot autopilot inside.

Personal life

He lived in the Somerset village of Dowlish Wake and attended

Wadham Community School Wadham School is a school for pupils aged 13–18 situated on a site on the outskirts of Crewkerne in Somerset, England. The school has been rated Good by Ofsted since May 2014. School site Wadham School opened in purpose built accommodati ...

Crewkerne Crewkerne ( ) is a town and electoral ward in Somerset, England, southwest of Yeovil and east of Chard all in the South Somerset district. The civil parish of West Crewkerne includes the hamlets of Coombe, Woolminstone and Henley – and b ...

. He served in the

RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

from 1984–1988 in Chivenor No. 63 Squadron RAF and RAF Prestwick.

References

English balloonists 1967 births Living people Journalists from Bristol Balloon flight record holders British aviation record holders {{Aviation-bio-stub