UK's largest balloon operator,WonderDays, which has 24 sites across the East Midlands including at Kelham House near Newark, has issued a call for new pilots

The UK's largest balloon operator has issued a call for new pilots, saying more needs to be done to help the next generation into the skies.

WonderDays, which has 24 sites across the East Midlands including at Kelham House near Newark, is trying to attract more people to the career which it says offers an incredibly rewarding alternative to the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

The barrier for entry can be steep as a commercial pilot’s licence can cost between £5,000 and £7,000, however, pilots can go on to earn anything up to £60,000 per year.

WonderDays director, Matt Jones, said: “While our bank of pilots have extraordinary amounts of experience, we really need to start onboarding the next generation of balloon pilots to ensure a seamless transition.

“We operate our flights from more than 110 locations around the UK — 24 of those in the East Midlands alone — and our pilots have flown all around the world, even over the top of Mount Kilimanjaro.

“Yet price is often a barrier to entry. A lot of our pilots started flying as a hobby and then turned it into a career, but how are we to attract the next intake if prices are prohibitive?”

WonderDays operates two hot air baloon sites in Nottinghamshire, at Kelham House near Newark and at Nottingham Racecourse. They also have five sites in Lincolnshire including Grantham and Stamford as well as ten more sites in Derbyshire, three in Leicestershire and four in Northamptonshire.

Despite people as young as 16 able to take the controls.

Matt said WonderDays operated a class-leading training programme in Italy where pilots could get expert tuition and fly in near-perfect conditions to amass their hours and experience.

“We’ve been doing this for the last couple of years and it has proved incredibly successful,” Matt continued. “We’d also encourage anyone interested to get involved as a crew member with our teams so they can start to build up their knowledge and experience for free.”

Pilot, Martin Collinson, has been flying balloons since 1994 and has visited more than 120 countries around the world.

“It really is the best job in the world,” he said.

“Not only are you making people’s dreams come true, you’re seeing the landscape from a totally unique perspective.

“I think I’ve probably got the best commute on the planet!”

Matt urged people interested in a high-flying career to visit: https://www.wonderdays.co.uk/how-to-become-a-hot-air-balloon-pilot