75 MPH is about as fast as a train. Slower than most euro or Asian trains.
I did not see how much it could left? I guess I am not seeing a real use here.
Speeds up to 75 mph? And this is supposed to replace normal flying?
Several years ago I had speculated that some billionaire/s might build such a thing. They could possibly live there and claim to be beyond any tax jurisdiction.
Come and go via helicopter. Or jetpack.
Interesting. Plus no real estate tax.
No grass to mow.
Looks like an incredible waste of money.
Its slow, it won’t carry much weight, it needs increasingly expensive helium, and its a massive target so can’t be used in war.
But what do I know...
The Hindenburg was twice the length at 804 feet long.
They need to up their game. The Hindenberg was 804 feet long.
If there’s no chance of it sparking and burning then I don’t see the point. Like a hot air baloon with a motor & steering.
The way the Germans were using hydrogen for the Hindenburg was totally safe. The Hindenburg was more intelligent than this thing other than for the aluminum oxide exterior paint.
Fill it full of hydrogen and load up with the woke, libs, leftists, AINOs and various other assorted sundry demons. Then, set sail for......the sun.
Many years ago, a California airship company had the brilliant idea of a wildfire-fighting airship. Typically, wildfire fighting aircraft are helicopters and fixed wing, that make one big drop of water on the fire. This would not replace them but complement them.
Its advantages included using a steady, hard rain on a location, which is more effective than a single big drop of water. It could detect heat columns and use a descending wire guided fire hose to offset from a fire. Under some circumstances it could use high expansion, fire retardant foam to protect critical sites.
It would carry a very large volume of water, and could refill from a lake or open water tank quickly by setting down on it. It could rotate its engines for VTOL, and would use compressors to store its helium with light load.
Tragically, the company went out of business just before they built a prototype. With a small fleet of such airships, it would save the western states billions of dollars every year, as well as many lives.
Oh! The humanity!
How many people can it carry?
Aside from tourist trips or some kind of amusement I don’t see this being much use for transport. These require perfect weather and flat terrain.
Not impressed. The Hindenburg was 800’ long.
With the price of helium fluctuating amid shortages, filling the Pathfinder 1 could cost between $250,000 (£197,877) and $1 million (£791,500).
They could easily cut the cost of flying this thing by mixing hydrogen with the helium to the point of keeping the mix below the flammability limit.
That would be below 4% but 3% of $1 million dollars is a lot of money (to me).
On another note the shortage of helium is Biden’s fault.
The only source of helium on Earth is natural gas wells.
Once again the Democrat war on carbon fuels is harming the economy.
Electric motors and helium?
What could go wrong...
My spidey senses said no very fast. Not a flight I’d like to be on.
In my mind I can’t chake the first impression I got of the Titan submersible.
https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/article/the-uss-macon/
They might have some use as a surveying platform, an aerial camera platform for public events, a large floating billboard, and certain freight applications across terrain unsuitable for oversize vehicles (large size and low weight cargo such as overland deliveries of windmill equipment), but the costs are still high for such airships to be feasible.
That’s one big balloon.