The UAE Hot Air Balloon Team has signed a partnership with the Saga Balloon Museum in Japan to establish the first dedicated hot air balloon museum in the Middle East. The facility, to be named ‘UAE Balloon Museum 7’, will be based in the UAE and operated by Emirati professionals.
The agreement was finalised during an official delegation visit to Saga, timed to coincide with the team’s participation in the 39th Pacific Cup and the Saga International Balloon Fiesta. During the visit, the delegation examined global technologies used in aviation and balloon museum management and exchanged knowledge with Japanese counterparts.
The new museum will join a network of seven specialised institutions worldwide, alongside two in the United States and one each in the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, and Japan.
Its focus will span the history of hot air ballooning, manufacturing and operational technologies, and the UAE team’s own international tours, which have been conducted under the slogan “The world will never forget you, Zayed” in tribute to the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.
“We are extremely proud that the United Arab Emirates has become the first nation in the Middle East to possess a comprehensive, integrated system in the world of hot air ballooning. The establishment of the ‘UAE Balloon Museum 7’, in collaboration with prestigious international institutions such as the Saga Balloon Museum, represents a qualitative leap and a knowledge bridge connecting our region to the horizons of aviation, both in its historical and modern aspects. This project is not merely a unique tourism and cultural experience; it also serves as a comprehensive and sustainable educational and training hub, facilitating the transfer of global expertise to our national talent. This aligns with the vision of our wise leadership to embrace innovative projects that consistently position the UAE at the forefront globally,” Captain Abdulaziz Nasser Al Mansoori, Head of the UAE Hot Air Balloon Team said in a statement.
Kiyoshi Mori, Deputy Director of the Saga Balloon Museum, welcomed the partnership and noted the UAE team’s longstanding ties with the institution. The team became the first to have an Arabic name inscribed on the museum’s honour boards, in 2006, through its participation in the same competition.
No opening date has been announced.
