The Irish Ballooning Association is affiliated to the National Aero Club of Ireland, the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale and the Commission Internationale d'Aerostation which is the international governing body of ballooning.

As the representative body for hot air ballooning in Ireland the IBA handles the selection process for International competitions and the supervises the National Ballooning Championship which celebrates its 39th. anniversary this year.

In the late 1950's there was a revival of hot air ballooning world-wide. The development of lightweight man-made fabrics and the introduction of bottled liquid petroleum gas made the manufacture and flying of balloons more practical. It wasn't long before some keen aviators explored the possibilities of bringing this new aviation experience to Ireland.

In June 1968 a group of Irish aviation enthusiasts founded the Dublin Ballooning Club which acquired its first balloon in 1970 and undertook the training of balloon pilots. As the sport developed and the number of balloons increased, it became necessary to set up an independent representative body for pilots and balloon owners and so the Balloon & Airship Association of Ireland was formed. Over time this became the Irish Ballooning Association which is now the governing body for all sport ballooning activities in Ireland.