[ELI5] how do hot air balloons even work? How do they know where they’re going without steering?

Question

[ELI5] how do hot air balloons even work? How do they know where they’re going without steering?

In: 846

Answer 1

Basically they don’t steer, they just follow air currents. Funny enough, for this reason, the US Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR) spell out that balloons have the right of way over all other aircraft categories because they are the least maneuverable. Only aircraft in distress have the right of way over balloons. That’s pretty meaningless though to a balloon pilot that can’t get out of the way anyway.

Source: 14 CFR § 91.113