A three day hot-air balloon festival hit the Missouri Southern campus Sept. 25 – 27. The event was organized by the Joplin Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Branson-based Balloon Festival Network, Inc. In addition to hot-air balloon rides, the event featured helicopter rides, paraplane rides and other activities. “The goal is to bring about awareness of the ballooning community,” said John Head, organizer of the festival. “Hot-air balloons are a very unique form of aircraft that a lot of people don’t get to see very often because they’re not exactly the most popular form of aircraft.”