Branson and Fossett take-off from Morocco on new world tour challenge

British Tycoon Richard Branson and his former archrival Steve Fossett lifted off this Friday from Marrakesh (Southern Morocco) on a new attempt to tour the world by balloon.

This is Branson's fifth attempt to be the first person to make the round-the-world balloon voyage.

The trip is expected to take from eight to 18 days, and, with continued favorable winds, could take about 10 days.

Branson secured permission from 97 countries for overflights and had only four refusals -- Iran, Iraq, Russia and North Korea--, said Mike Johnson, a spokesman for ICO Global, a mobile telephone company supporting the trip.

Fossett has made four tries to ring the globe, the last one ending when his Solo Spirit was ripped apart in a violent storm off Australia.

Branson has tried, and failed, four times to become the first person to trek the globe in a balloon. The only time he managed to take off, in January 1997, his balloon crashed a day after takeoff, landing in the Algerian desert.

The crew was more confident this time because of the better technology used to build the balloon, including a Kevlar canopy over the crew's pressurized capsule. Kevlar is used for bulletproof vests.

At least three other balloon crews have been waiting for favorable weather to launch their balloons -- from Albuquerque, N.M., Loves Park, Ill., and the Swiss Alps. Yet another team is to take off next month from Alice Springs, Australia.