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Balloon crew surpasses old record

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Two pilots in a helium-filled balloon on a record-setting journey across the Pacific Ocean entered the final leg of their trip today as they traveled along the California coast for an expected landing somewhere in Mexico.

The pilots made history Thursday, first matching and then surpassing the 5,209-mile official world distance record for human flight in a gas balloon. Their next milestone is a 1978 duration record of 137 hours, 5 minutes and 50 seconds in the air in a traditional gas balloon — a mark that’s considered the “holy grail” of ballooning achievements.

The Two Eagles team expected to surpass that this morning.

They hope to land Saturday somewhere on the peninsula of Baja California.

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