

The six-kilometer (3.7-mile) crossing, to raise funds for a children's hospital named after the country's former president, was the first stunt of its kind from the historical site.

Matt Silver-Vallance, 37, took around an hour to float across the Atlantic Ocean from Robben Island while harnessed to a mass of mufti-coloured balloons in grey, drizzly conditions with low visibility.

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Making his way wearing a wetsuit, he floated a few meters above the sea, with controls for flight including bags weighted with water and an air gun and make-shift spear to pop balloons.

"Wow, that was crazy," he said, saying he felt "unbelievable" after landing in a rubber duck around 300-400 meters (985-1,310 feet) from shore once the balloons were released.

"Don't try this at home," he quipped.


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The daring mission aimed to raise 10 million rand ($1.1 million, 852,000 euros) for the Nelson Mandela Children's Hospital which will be built in Johannesburg.



"The risks that I'm taking are tiny compared to the risks that he took," he said, adding he was not a dare-devil.

When asked what message he had for Mandela, an emotional Silver-Vallance said: "I think like most South Africans we all love him very much," he said.

He said he hoped the flight "could bring a smile to (Mandela's) face,"

Later, after the flight, Nelson Mandela was discharged from hospital after being admitted 10 days ago for a bout of pneumonia.

There have only been 12 previous such balloon flights in the world -- two of which were fatal -- according to Silver-Vallance, who now lives in Britain.