The first hot air balloon passengers (back in 1783) were a sheep, duck, and rooster.
When the Montgolfier brothers launched their brand-new invention into the skies of France, they weren’t about to risk a human life. So they picked three barnyard animals to take the very first balloon ride in history.
Their reasoning? Each animal had a different ability: ducks could fly high, roosters could fly low (barely), and sheep couldn’t fly at all. If all three survived the flight, they’d know it was probably safe for people too.
The flight lasted 8 minutes and traveled about 2 miles. They all made it back down in one piece.
This test flight paved the way for the first human passengers just two months later.