Maribor Stories: Macher and Margarete recalls a time when balloon flights were a novelty in the city. On 8 June 1912, the gas balloon Erzherzogin Margarete arrived in Maribor by train. A livestock market beside the municipal slaughterhouse was chosen as the launch site, with a special gas pipeline laid from the nearby gasworks.
The next morning, a crowd gathered as a military band played and the balloon began to rise. Ropes on one side were released too late, and the gondola carrying Lieutenant Max Macher and four passengers became caught in a tree. Macher freed the balloon from the branches, climbed into the sky and flew south, landing near Draža vas, close to Slovenske Konjice.
Margarete made several more flights from Maribor, and local residents could pay to join them. According to the story, the pilot himself attracted considerable attention. Disagreements about men and women travelling together reportedly helped bring the flights to an end in mid-August. The balloon was returned to Vienna. The episode recalls the early days of ballooning in Maribor.
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