He did not go through airship training and fight in a war for nothing, Ales reminds himself when Moggle Mog raises his staff. Without warning the others on board, he spins the wheel as hard as he can.

"The altitude!" he yelled over the whistling of the wind, loud enough for his puppet to register the command and pull a single lever. The ship would raise into the sky while veering out of the swatting path, and with a winding trajectory, hopefully steer clear of the staff.