Behind every successful balloonist is a cadre of dedicated crewpersons who help to inflate the balloon, follow the intrepid balloonist, and help to pack up the balloon at the landing site. Berkshire Balloons would like to acknowledge the best darned crew team in the state. They wake up early, they (sometimes) bring coffee for the pilot, they keep tuned to entertaining radio stations, and they eat huge breakfasts. Sometimes they even show up at the landing site!

Many of the Berkshire team are pilots in their own right; you can often see them flying their own balloons alongside the Berkshire Balloons craft. Fellow pilot Jim O'Brien has a great Ballooning Web Site with lots of pictures (tastefully annotated) of his flights. Since Jim often flies from the same launch sites as Berkshire Balloons, you can see some of the Berkshire Balloons crafts in action. In fact, many of the pictures on this site are courtesy of Jim!

Berkshire Balloons is always on the look-out for good Crew people. Drop us a line if you're interested in Hot-Air Ballooning and are willing to invest a few days a year! Do you have the right stuff to crew? Take a look at our Balloon Crew Checklist and see how you rate!

If you are interested in ballooning, the best way to learn more, get to know the sport, and pick up the tricks of the trade are to crew for experienced pilots. Many of the area private and commercial pilots started out crewing for others. We also invite you to join CLAS, the Connecticut Lighter than Air Society.