Corraleños can pick up large white “X†markers at Village Hall to designate safe landing zones for balloonists during the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.
The markers are available free of charge until Oct. 13.
Larry Mary and Karen Brown, members of the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta’s landowner relations team, distributed the white pre-cut plastic markers Sept. 19. The duo also set up a marker to demonstrate its proper use. Their mission is to help balloonists identify safe landing spots while ensuring the safety of residents and their properties.
Residents and business owners who wish to designate their property as a safe landing zone should have an open space roughly 100 to 150 feet on each side to allow for safe landing.
“The pilots love [flying over Corrales and Rio Rancho] because there’s a whole lot more open space out here than there is going south over [Albuquerque],†Brown said. “They can play a little longer and they don’t have to land quite as quickly.â€
Residents who prefer not to have balloonists flying over their property can designate their land as a prohibitive zone by obtaining a red sheet from the landowner relations team. According to Mary, these prohibitive zones are included on the fiesta map used by pilots, who must maintain a minimum altitude of 500 feet above these areas while flying, with no landings or takeoffs allowed.
“The blast from the burner is supersonic and it’s like blowing a dog whistle,†Mary said. “We don’t hear it, but it scares horses.â€
If landowners wish to prohibit landings or takeoffs on their property, they can obtain a yellow sheet from the relations team. However, according to Mary, in a medical emergency, balloonists can land anywhere.
“We’re watching for the prohibitive zones, that they don’t land in the prohibitive zones and also just kind of go out and help the balloonists or the landowners as best we can,†Mary said.
The white Xs are also available at the Balloon Fiesta office and the Hispano Chamber of Commerce throughout the fiesta.