Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade balloons ready to take flight

Performers and marching bands will hit New York streets to kick off holiday season

Workers inflate a balloon of the Dragonball character Goku as the balloon is readied for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. AP

Stuart the Minion and his banana are making their Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade debut. The 96th annual parade will take place in New York on Thursday. AFP

Watching the inflating of the balloons is a pre-Thanksgiving tradition for many and open to the public. AP

Stuart is considered to be a slacker compared to the other Minions, preferring to relax and play the ukulele, rather than listening to Tiny Boss's orders. AFP

Snoopy has been a regular staple character in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade since 1968. AFP

The Sinclair Oil Corporation’s Dino has appeared in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade since 1963. AP

TikTok sensation Corn Kid will appear on the Jolly Green Giant float. AFP

The Macy’s Turkey Float struts his stuffing before the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. AFP

The first SpongeBob balloon is notable as the parade's first square balloon, requiring more than 600 internal tie-ins to retain the shape that has become synonymous with the character. AFP

A police canine watches as members of the Macy's Inflation Team work to inflate balloons and maybe chase them. AFP

In August of 2020, the Papa Smurf balloon was brought out of retirement and used as a test subject for the newly enacted five-vehicle framework, which was put in place to reduce the amount of handlers and overall parade participants. AFP

The 2022 event will be the third consecutive parade to enact a health and safety plan in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. AFP

A total of 90 handlers are needed to man this Diary of a Wimpy Kid balloon. AFP

The giant balloons were originally inflated with air and did not float. AFP

Members of the Macy's Inflation Team try not to get carried away. AFP

Members of the Macy's Inflation Team work to inflate the Dino and Baby Dino balloon. AFP

Baby Shark will make its Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade appearance in 2022, with the debut of an all-new float-balloon combo. AFP

The original Ronald McDonald balloon made its first public appearance at the Macy's store located in the Dallas Galleria, appearing alongside the Baby Shamu balloon flying high above the mall's famed ice-skating rink. AFP

Striker the US Soccer Star pays homage to the US men's football team, currently playing in the World Cup. AFP

Handlers with balloon footballs will follow behind Striker's striking foot. AFP

The Grogu or Baby Yoda balloon is a crowd pleaser. Invision / AP

Most of the parade performances take place in front of the famous New York store or on individual floats. Reuters

Stuart the minion will float through the sky holding a 3D printed man inside a banana costume. Photo: Macy's

Hundreds of people queue to watch the floats being prepared. Getty Images / AFP

The Wimpy Kid is ready to take Manhattan. EPA

Bluey gets final touches from parade balloon techs. EPA

Toddlers watch in awe as some of their favourite characters get supersized. EPA

New York City Mayor Eric Adams made assurances that the parade goers safety was of upmost importance. EPA

Striker is made ready for the pitch. EPA

Millions of spectators are expected to line the streets of New York on Thursday to kick off the holiday season with the traditional Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, which features balloons, musical performances and the arrival of Santa Claus.

Organisers were making final preparations on Wednesday for the parade, now in its 96th year, to roll down the streets of Manhattan, past the shopping chain's flagship location in Herald Square. The annual festivities will be broadcast live on NBC starting at 9am EST.

On Wednesday afternoon, about 100 volunteers gathered to inflate the high-flying balloons such as Bluey, the Australian cattle pup, and Stuart, the one-eyed Minion, pumping them full of helium with giant hoses.

Macy's says that the Stuart balloon will feature him holding an animated man in a banana suit, which is 3D-printed, making it the first ever Macy's Parade balloon to use an object created by a 3D printer.

This year's parade will feature 15 other giant character balloons, 28 floats, 40 novelty and heritage inflatables, 12 marching bands, 700 clowns, 10 performance groups and, of course, Santa Claus, who rides in at the very end of the celebration.

The Macy's parade is a traditional holiday season kickoff, with spectators often lining up a half-dozen deep along the route to cheer the marchers, floats, entertainers and marching bands from all across the country.

This year, a marching band from Veracruz, Mexico, will be included among bands from California to Texas and Florida, among several other states.

In between bands and parade floats, well-known stars and guests such as Gloria Estefan, Ziggy Marley, Joss Stone and Jordin Sparks will make appearances.

Not always smooth sailing

Inflation is done carefully and piece by piece with every balloon to prevent damage, but that has not always been the case.

Moving large parade balloons is a treacherous endeavour, with the most recent incident involving an inflated Spider-Man crashing into a tree in 2013, ripping its arm apart.

The Kermit balloon also collided with a tree in the 1991 parade, deflating the puppet's head, prompting one commentator to quip: “It's not easy being green.”

The Muppet did not return to the party until 2002.

A Superman balloon in 1985 also had its arm ripped off when it got caught on a tree branch.

In the 1957 parade, Popeye drenched parade onlookers when rainwater from its inflated hat spilt on to crowds when the balloon swayed to the side due to wind.

A Mighty Mouse balloon in 1956 hit a street sign and broke apart, landing on the ground.

And given the recent spate of mass shootings across the country, security and safety are of the utmost concern.

“In light of recent events, specifically the shooting in the nightclub in Colorado Springs and the arrest of two individuals for posting threatening statements online to Jewish targets, the Counter-Terrorism Bureau will deploy additional resources to ensure the festivities across the city are safe for all,” the city's Counter-Terrorism Bureau chief Martine Materasso said at a press conference.

The Associated Press contributed to this report