ET inspires cross-Channel bid

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Stephane Rousson, 39, from Nice, took off from the coast of Hythe in Kent and hopes to reach Wissant while suspended from the miniature Zeppelin.

He is being shadowed by two boats during the 28-mile journey across one of the world's busiest shipping lanes in case he and his contraption plunge into the sea.

A spokeswoman who is on board one of the boats, said: "To have set off is a victory in itself. He had to wait for just the right weather conditions but they came at the right time.

"It's all going right. He is hovering about 10 metres from the water and is making a really good go of it."

It marks the second attempt at the challenge by Rousson after he was forced to postpone a previous bid in June because strong winds made the feat too hazardous.

It is also the second daredevil cross-Channel feat in as many days, following the success of Swiss adventurer Yves Rossy, 49, who on Friday became the first person to fly solo across the sea using a single jet-powered wing.

The challenge is a long-held dream for flying enthusiast Rousson, whose love affair with aviation grew as a child after watching Steven Spielberg's alien adventure and led to him gaining a pilot's licence.

He said: "When I was young, I saw the movie and watched the little guy pedalling on a bike flying in front of the moon with ET. I always wanted to fly."

The 16-metre-long helium-filled blimp, nicknamed "Miss Louise" after his former girlfriend, requires light gusts of only two knots to become airborne.