Brian Jones

Who is Brian Jones?

Brian Jones is an English balloonist.

Brian Jones, along with Bertrand Piccard, co-piloted the first successful uninterrupted circumnavigation of the world on board the balloon Breitling Orbiter 3. They set off on 1 March 1999 from Château d'Oex in Switzerland and landed in Egypt after a 45,755 kilometre flight lasting 19 days, 21 hours and 47 minutes.

For this achievement, he received awards including the Harmon Trophy, the Hubbard Medal, the FAI Gold Air Medal and the Charles Green Salver.

Still active in ballooning records, In November 2010 Jones piloted the Esprit Breitling Orbiter as a launch platform for Yves Rossy. Rossy made the first successful attempt to perform loops using a jet-powered flying-wing backpack.

Jones grew up in Knowle, Bristol. He served for 13 years in the Royal Air Force. He is married to Joanna, a balloonist, and has two children. He co-authored the book The Greatest Adventure ISBN 978-0747264439 with Bertrand Piccard.