Posted on 11/22/2006 5:32:16 PM PST by red flanker
This is not a Blimp. It's a sort of flying Queen Mary 2 that could change the way you think about air travel. It's the Aeroscraft, and when it's completed, it will ferry pampered passengers across continents and oceans as they stroll leisurely about the one-acre cabin or relax in their well-appointed staterooms. Unlike its dirigible ancestors, the Aeroscraft is not lighter than air. Its 14 million cubic feet of helium hoist only two thirds of the craft's weight. The rigid and surprisingly aerodynamic body—driven by huge rearward propellers—generates enough additional lift to keep the behemoth and its 400-ton payload aloft while cruising. During takeoff and landing, six turbofan jet engines push the ship up or ease its descent.
This two-football-fields-long concept airship is the brainchild of Igor Pasternak, whose privately-funded California firm, Worldwide Aeros Corporation, is in the early stages of developing a prototype and expects to have one completed by 2010. Pasternak says several cruise ship companies have expressed interest in the project, and for good reason: The craft would have a range of several thousand miles and, with an estimated top speed of 174 mph, could traverse the continental U.S. in about 18 hours. During the flight, passengers would peer at national landmarks just 8,000 feet below or, if they weren't captivated by the view, the cavernous interior would easily accommodate such amenities as luxury staterooms, restaurants, even a casino.
(Excerpt) Read more at popsci.com ...
A blimp by any other name.......
The humanity!
Blimp!
400 ton payload traveling at 175 mph--could there be military transport applications for this?
It looks like something out of a cartoon...
5.56mm
I would definitely save up for a trip on this. Really cool!
Provided, it's affordable to the average mutley.
beat me too it !
Won't everyone sound like Mickey Mouse when they talk? /sarc
Yep. Plus in situations where we have air supremacy, you could have one of those staying on station for extended time periods, dropping smart bombs on the heads of guerrillas below
Ya gotta be quick around here! ;0)
USS Macon Flying Aircraft Carrier of the 1930s.
The USS Macon carried 50 of these Sparrow Hawk fighter bombers. The aircraft were swung out, dropped and were recovered by the same mechanism.
What? 50? Last I saw, it carried TWO.
Lemme check.
My bad. It was quite a few years ago that I read up on the Macon, and a zero crept into the figure somewhere along the line since then.
Want do you want to bet this thing is a huge jet-set hit?
And that it allows smoking?
Oh, the hugh manatee!
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