A company which operated a helium balloon, often seen over Leeds Castle and the M20, is to close its Kent site with the loss of five jobs.

The £500,000 Hiflyer, a tethered balloon which reached 400ft, will fly for the last time on Sunday, January 4.

It has been operated by Lindstrand Aeroplatforms since May 2007 and the company says a fall is passenger numbers is behind the decision to close the Kent site.

Another Hiflyer balloon will continue to operate from the company’s other site in Torquay, Devon.

Neil Taylor, operations manager for Lindstrand Aeroplatforms, one of those will lose his job, said: “We have given it a good go over the past year-and-a-half, but the passenger footfall has just not been there.

“The company is looking at other sites, not in Kent, near the coast, where they predict the footfall will be higher.

“With dropping passenger numbers the costs to run the balloon have remained the same, and its costs about £30,000 just to fill it with helium.”

A flight in the Hiflyer balloon cost £14 for adults, with room 25 people on each flight.

Lindstrand leased the site from Leeds Castle and stressed the decision to close had nothing to do with the castle.

Mr Taylor added: “We wanted to let people know we are closing as we are aware there are people out there still with tickets.

“We would encourage them to use them before January 4, or they can check our website for an address where they can apply for refunds.”

• If you have a ticket for the Hiflyer balloon, see www.thehiflyer.com