A hot air balloon named after and shaped like Yury Gagarin’s spacecraft, Vostok 1, could be seen alongside three other gigantic balloons in the air above Yekaterinburg. The balloons performed a demonstration flight as part of the national air show “Earth in the Palm of Your Hand,” held in the Sverdlovsk Region’s capital starting May 21.
The “Vostok” was created by the Russian Aeronautical Society to mark the 50th anniversary of the first manned spaceflight. It flew to the Urals from Moscow.
The air show will be held in Yekaterinburg until May 27. Spectators will see demonstrations and sports flights performed by 12 pilots from various Russian regions.