Krakow became one of the first Polish cities where people became interested in hot air ballooningin the 18th century. In 1784, Professors Jan Jaszkiewicz, Jan Sniedecki, Jan Schaster and Franciszek Scheidt launched five balloons there.
The first experiments with "air bubbles" took place on February 19, 21 and 24. They served as preparation for the main, famous Krakow experiment, which took place on April 1.
On this day, scientists filled the shell with heated air. The volume of the ball was 260 cubic meters. It was made of elastic paper and weighed about 60 kilograms. At 7 o'clock in the morning, three cannon shots informed the residents of Krakow that the test would take place at 10 o'clock, as planned. Only people with invitations and entrance cards were allowed to the place where the balloon was launched, to the Botanical Garden.
First they set fire to several bundles of well-dried straw, and then a pile of dry beech firewood. Flames a few feet high were directed inside the shell. The heating process lasted several minutes. When the bullet began to escape from the hands of the people who were holding it, the command came to release the "balloon" and he moved up with considerable speed to the enthusiastic shouts of the audience.
Shortly after takeoff, a nearby special team began to determine the altitude of the flight by angular measurements. According to the published report, the aircraft started at 10:17, reached a height of 30 meters in 27 seconds, 60 meters in 50 seconds, and was at an altitude of 4000 meters 14 minutes after launch. The balloon was clearly visible not only from the launch site, but also from remote areas of Krakow. At about 10:37 the balloon began to descend, and at 10:47 it landed near the city walls - between the Florian Gate and the Nicholas Gate.
But the next attempt by Krakow scientists to launch a balloon failed. Launched on July 9, the aircraft exploded during flight and burned. The crash was caused by a break in one of the ropes used to tie the "balloon". This led to the abandonment of aerial experiments for a while.