Swedish adventurer Per Lindstrand has unveiled plans for a £750,000 balloon which could take up to 600,000 people a year 500ft into the air.

Even when grounded the HiFlyer would be one of the largest and most prominent tourist attractions in Sussex - standing at 120ft and dwarfing the buildings near its take-off site in Victoria Gardens, Brighton.

But critics today reacted with horror at the scale of the proposals and argued the idea was so "ridiculous" it wasn't worth contemplating.

Dr Lindstrand, who holds the world balloon altitude record and who became famous for his flights with Richard Branson, has submitted a planning application and hopes to have the HiFlyer in the air by April.

The balloon would ascend 68 times a day between the hours of 7am and midnight, emblazoned with brightly-coloured advertising.

Dr Lindstrand, managing director of Lindstrand Technologies, said: "You get wonderful views for more than 20 miles around the area. People love it."

But Selma Montford, secretary of the Brighton Society, said the scheme was so ridiculous it was not even worth contemplating.

She said: "Has this company ever been to Brighton?

"Does it understand anything about the city's history?

"They are proposing a hideous monstrosity right in one of the most historic parts of the city.

"Victoria Gardens is a very special place of great architectural significance with buildings and monuments that have been there since the 18th Century.

"The idea of putting something like this balloon there is absolutely outrageous."

There are now Lindstrand HiFlyers permanently stationed at sites around the world, from the Niagara and Victoria falls to China and Japan, and they carry millions of passengers each year.

The first and only British HiFlyer was introduced in Bournemouth.

Under British law the balloons - known as aerostats - are certified by the Civil Aviation Authority as "aircraft" rather than by the Health and Safety Executive as "fairground rides".

The HiFlyer would measure 72ft in diameter and be tethered to the ground through a 45-tonne high-tensile wire cable which would attach to an electrical winch system, which in turnn would pull the balloon back to earth after a flight.

An octagonal-shaped gondala below would carry 25 passengers every 15 minutes for about £10 each, seven days a week and all year around if demand was great enough.

A 1.8m fence would be put up around an enclosure, taking up much of the area of the central Victoria Gardens, just behind the Royal Pavilion and opposite the University of Brighton and the Grade I-listed Marlborough House.

Barry Leigh, the planning representative at the North Laine Community Association, said: "I can't describe in words how awful we think this proposal is.

"It would be visible everywhere in the city and is bang in the centre in a very traditional area. It would look hideous and is a horrendous idea.

"We certainly don't want a huge advert staring down at us everywhere we go."

But Dr Lindstrand has been backed by the city's business community Tony Mernagh, chairman of the Brighton and Hove Business Forum, said: "A precendent has already been set for having large tourist attractions in Victoria Gardens with the Ladyboys of Bangkok.

"I don't think it would unduly affect people visiting the gardens as it is not exactly a tranquil spot as it is, right in between two busy roads.

"It sounds like great fun and just so Brighton. I wish the company the best of luck with their planning application."

Dr Lindstrand said: "Our first UK balloon ride that we launched in Bournemouth has been very successful and Brighton would be the ideal place for number two.

"The balloons are enormously safe and rides can be taken by anyone, including babies or people in wheelchairs."

The plans are scheduled to be considered and debated by Brighton and Hove City Council's planning committee, which meets on March 23.