The Anderson-Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum is the premier location for learning about the history of ballooning.
Collection Highlights
- Silver Fox gondola, in which Ed Yost made an Atlantic-crossing attempt
- Zanussi Gondola
- Re-creation of Double Eagle II gondola, first manned balloon to cross Atlantic Ocean, 1978
- A model of the Kitty Hawk gondola in which Maxie Anderson and Kristian Anderson crossed North America, 1980
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The original Double Eagle V gondola, First crossing of the Pacific Ocean by manned balloon (Ben Abruzzo, Larry Newman, Ron Clark, Rocky Aoki), 1981 - Joe Kittinger, Rosie O' Grady, solo Atlantic Ocean flight
Special Features
Other unique museum experiences include an in-depth visual replay of the world-record breaking adventures of New Mexico's own fabled pilots Maxie Anderson and Ben Abruzzo with a salute to those who helped make the flights possible: Ed Yost, Joe Kittinger, Bob Rice, "Doc" Wiley, Richard Schwoebel, and Jim Mitchell.
Ballooning History
Explore rare and unusual museum objects and documents relating to the origins of ballooning collected by Jacques Soukup and Kirk Thomas. The Soukup & Thomas Collection, donated to the museum by the City of Mitchell, South Dakota, brings to a complete circle the history of this fascinating, romantic and courageous sport.
The museum's archival holdings contain historic documents, first-hand accounts of the intrepid voyages of balloonists of the past, rare books, and other rich artifacts.
