10

A mirage

Some people belived it to be a dragon. A farmer reportedly burst out „My lord, you people, prostrate yourself. Our heavenly father is coming!“ But what had appeared in the sky was not an extraterrestial apparition but the aeronautical pioneer Wilhelmine Reichard. She had often traveled in a hot air balloon but in 1812 she lost her way, the balloon rose to 7800 m and ripped. Its car with the unconscious woman crashed into a spruce at the Wachberg in Saxon Switzerland.
Wilhelmine Reichard survived the crash landing without major injuries. Ten years later she again floated in the air – as one of the attractions at the tenth Oktoberfest in Munich.