True. The main airspace restrictions on ultralights that are not on certificated aircraft are a prohibition against flying over congested areas (yellow on a sectional chart), and within the lateral boundaries of Class E airspaces around airports. (You can't fly an ultralight in the class E airspace around an airport, nor in the Class G airspace underneath that Class E)

Certificated aircraft (including balloons) can be flown over congested areas and within Class E and G airspaces.

The limitations on flight in A, B, C, and D airspaces are similar for both: flight is prohibited without specific authorization arranged beforehand.

Interestingly, if an ultralight somehow received permission to enter Class E(controlled) airspace, they still cannot descend into the Class G (uncontrolled) below it. That Class G is within the lateral boundaries of the Class E, and the controller's authority does not extend to that airspace.

Sure but the vast majority of US airspace is uncontrolled.

Those $23,000 balloons will be certificated aircraft, and will need a licensed pilot, even though they might otherwise qualify as ultralights.

Most ultralight cloudhoppers are homebuilt envelopes with commercial burners and fuel systems. Material cost in the neighborhood of $5000.

My used, complete, certificated system (not a cloudhopper; a regular hot air balloon) was $10,000, including envelope, basket, burners, tanks, fan, trailer, instruments, and a bunch of accessories.

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Pretty much, yes.

Our burners consume raw, liquid propane, at 150PSI to the blast valve. Normally, when liquid expands into a gas, the temperature drops precipitously, and with it, the pressure. However, we feed that liquid propane into a heat exchanger: the coils at the top of the burner. This superheats the propane, allowing it to vaporize easily and rapidly after it passes through the nozzles on the burner ring.

The end result is a 30' flame.

You'd want to fashion some sort of sling and stock to handle that burner without its usual frame but it's certainly doable.

To be fair, a 250g RC aircraft can cause a lot of destruction to a plane that's in the process of taking off/landing or to a car on a highway.

Having said that, they really have gone overboard with the regulation. Restrict airspace near airports and over highways, not something as ambiguous as "over people". They also (still) require a spotter for FPV which is just silly. The point of the spotter is so you can figure out where it went if you lose control (presumably, to take responsibility if it crashes into something important and does some damage). Anyone flying FPV is going to know exactly where the RC aircraft was when they lost control (and modern ones will return themselves home if contact is lost like that).

They need to focus more on regulating features instead of "what and where". If every RC aircraft has to have a return to home feature that would make more sense than something super ambiguous like, "don't fly above people."

Not directly, but depending on the airspace you are violating you might end up meeting some people who have absolutely zero chill

They don't command them, but they call them in like you call the police.

Fun fact: From time to time, a pilot forgets to change frequency when entering a new area. This means the plane looks like it is not communicating. This is the most common reason why jets are sent to intercept an airliner. Of course, I would pay to see a recording of the pilots as they see the jet in front of them and realize they messed up.

I mean there was that Chinese balloon last year that was literally shot down by a F-22 so… yes?

Air space is regulated and enforced here too. Even for drones.

How come I don’t see any high-speed balloon chases then?

That is impeded by laws higher than your country's.

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