On November 26, 2005, Vijaypat Singhania set the world altitude record for highest hot-air-balloon flight, reaching 21,290 m (69,850 ft). He launched from downtown Mumbai, India, and landed 240 km (150 mi) south in Panchale.

The world record for the highest altitude ever reached in a manned hot air balloon is 68,986 feet (21,027 meters), set by Vijaypat Singhania on November 26, 2005. He flew over Mumbai, India, in a massive 1.6 million cubic foot balloon. To survive at this extreme altitude, which is more than twice the height of Mount Everest and well into the stratosphere, Singhania had to use a pressurized cabin or a highly specialized flight suit with supplemental oxygen, as the atmospheric pressure is too low to sustain human life and the air is freezing. For context, standard commercial hot air balloon rides typically stay between 1,000 and 3,000 feet for sightseeing. Singhania's record-breaking flight required meticulous engineering to ensure the burners could still function in the thin oxygen of the upper atmosphere. This feat remains a landmark in aviation history, pushing the limits of what is possible with a simple envelope of hot air. The previous record was held by Per Lindstrand, who reached 64,997 feet in 1988, showing that while technology has advanced, the stratosphere remains a challenging and dangerous frontier for balloonists.