The first free flight

The first untethered, free flight with humans onboard a hot air balloon took place on 21 November 1783.

King Louis XVI of France had decided that condemned criminals would be the first pilots, but de Rozier successfully petitioned for the honor.

For this occasion the diameter of the balloon was increased to almost 50 feet.
A smoky fire slung under the the balloon placed in an iron basket, and it was controllable by the balloonists.

The flight lasted 25 minutes and it took the two men just over five miles.

Enough fuel remained on board at the end of the flight to have allowed the balloon to fly four to five times as far.
The fire threatened to engulf the balloon and the men decided to land as soon as they were over the open countryside.

On 21 November 1783 they conducted the first manned free flight.
The first human to fly freely was Pilâtre, together with an army officer, the marquis d'Arlandes.

The flight began from the grounds of the Château de la Muette (close to the Bois de Boulogne (park)) in the western outskirts of Paris.
They flew aloft about 3,000 feet (910 m) above Paris for a distance of nine kilometres.
After 25 minutes, the machine landed between the windmills, outside the city ramparts, on the Butte-aux-Cailles.
Enough fuel remained on board at the end of the flight to have allowed the balloon to fly four to five times as far.

Source: Wikipedia