Having served 28 years in the Army and being around and involved with corporate hot air ballooning for the last 27, one of the things I've learned over time is that change is given. In a perfect world, change comes with new technology . . . . but more often than not, change comes with new leadership. In an effort to leave THEIR mark, new Commanders/CEO's; new Operations Officers/Marketing Directors change the way things have historically been done . . . . "this is how I learned, so this is the way we're going to do things now." or "that was his idea, this is mine." or "my buddy runs a company so we're going to hire him."
Look how many uniform changes the Army has gone through in the last 4o years. A prime example is the black beret, worn originally by the Army's elite Rangers. General Shinseki, an Armor Officer, tried for years to align US Armor headgear with other countries armored units - the black beret. Once he became the Army's Chief of Staff he's now in a position where he can make and effect that change . . . for the entire Army!! We were told it was because "the beret" would bring more esprit within the ranks . . . which didn't happen. To make matters worse, the new black berets were initially made in China, which caused such an uproar they were warehoused and sold off as new berets were manufactured in the good ole U.S. of A. Those of us who earned and wore the Green Beret just sat back, watched, joked, and shook our heads the entire time this was going on
The civilian Aeronauts during the Civil War resigned in frustration with the new leadership's lack of understanding of balloon operations and because of their lack of support for them. After 3,000 ascents in "field" conditions, the balloons needed major repair or replacement - demonstrated when one balloon ripped apart while in the air during strong winds sending the Aeronauts and military observer hard to the ground after the battle of Chancellorsville. It was their lives on the line, not those in leadership positions. Later, when leaders asked for balloon support, they were surprised to learn it was no longer available and asked . . . when and how the heck did that happen?!?!
For years I tried to get the U.S. Army to have a hot air balloon program similar to the U.S. Navy's and was told "we don't have a balloon corps, so why would we use a balloon as a recruiting/public relations tool" . . . . "you can't do that, it's not part of your official duties." In an effort to show them how the program could work I paid for it out of pocket. At the time Army recruiting colors were green and white . . . . they are now black and gold. I'd like to think my efforts influenced that decision, but the leadership never bought into the program and I continued paying for it out of pocket because it worked and it was the right thing to do.
Like Lowe, I personally understand the frustrations of convincing senior leadership that using balloons was the right thing to do . . .
While there is no written record of what was going on in the minds of senior leadership at the time, I hope this gives a better understanding of why the Balloon Corps ended.
Respectfully, your humble servant
TSCLowe
Bringing the