Still Waters Posted January 4, 2013 #1 Share Posted January 4, 2013 A radical new kind of airship funded by the US military is about to make its first test flight - and it looks uncannily like the Thunderbird 2 craft from the classic TV show. The Aeroscraft airship will carry three times as much as the biggest military cargo planes over thousands of miles, use a third of the fuel, and it doesn't even need a landing strip. It could also have major implications for cargo haulage, and almost everything now laboriously transported across the planet's surface by boat, train and lorry could within years be carried through the skies, its makers claim. http://www.dailymail...m--warfare.html 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Q-C Posted January 4, 2013 #2 Share Posted January 4, 2013 Is this for real? Very cool!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
praetorian-legio XIII Posted January 7, 2013 #3 Share Posted January 7, 2013 Very cool for a commercial cargo mover but military applications? Seems like it would be an easy target, slow,big and full of compressed gas. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pitchp Posted January 9, 2013 #4 Share Posted January 9, 2013 yep looks like a ufo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coffey Posted January 9, 2013 #5 Share Posted January 9, 2013 Very cool for a commercial cargo mover but military applications? Seems like it would be an easy target, slow,big and full of compressed gas. Exactly what I was thinking. Certainly wouldn't be a front line thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keithisco Posted January 9, 2013 #6 Share Posted January 9, 2013 This is interesting, but the Pentagon has already successfully flown (August 2012) a fully developed 304ft long airship built by Hybrid Air Vehicles Ltd (HAV) of Bedford UK (in partnership with Northrop - Grumman) as a Military Surveillance Platform. for use in Theatres of War (Afghanistan). I am very proud to have had some involvement in this airship at an early stage. HAV may also develop a 1000Ton Lift airship for specific markets. Airships are virtually impervious to attacks by ground based artillery (the rents in the fabric being too small to actually cause catastrophic gas escape - leading instead to a gradual, controlled, degradation of lift). Check out their site, and be a little less impressed with what the Pentagon are proposing http://www.hybridairvehicles.com/ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExoPaul Posted January 9, 2013 #7 Share Posted January 9, 2013 Not front line maybe but imagine if you wanted to move all your military to an allied country next door, such as what they did during the Gulf wars. Rather than dozens of cargo planes flying in and out, it would just require one or two blimps to carry all the equipment in. Everything would be on site incredibly quickly, all together, ready to operate much faster and most of all in these economic times, much, much cheaper! I am not sure on the height limits of the vehicle but most enemies of the state tend to countries with military limitations rather than Russia or China who could counter it! It therefore could be possible for it to hover over a country like Afgahnistan, Yemen, maybe Syria and survelliance at a safe height while also carrying a compliment of fully fuelled and armed Drones on board for attacks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wolfknight Posted January 9, 2013 #8 Share Posted January 9, 2013 Will be great if it flys. Wonder how many million or billions was spent on this? Thunders are a GO!!!! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keithisco Posted January 9, 2013 #9 Share Posted January 9, 2013 (edited) Will be great if it flys. Wonder how many million or billions was spent on this? Thunders are a GO!!!! The 304ft surveillance airship cost 150M USD to develop and deploy. This is less than 1 JSF Edited January 9, 2013 by keithisco Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maximusnow Posted January 9, 2013 #10 Share Posted January 9, 2013 This is the future, Imagine a floating aircraft carrier, twice as large as what we have in the waters. It would look like this air craft but HUGE! with a flat deck on top that could house 40 plus aircraft and maintain its position for 6 plus months. Refuelers and supply floatillas servicing these craft. This craft wold have the same countermeasures that our current Naval vessels use to prevent being sunk or shot down. It would allow us to hover a base, above our enemy and rain down thousands of android or humanoid troops at a moments notice. It would have large Air locks for Smaller Air ships to Dock for ground support. Now take it to the next level of the imagination....It could travel into space just like the ballon that a human leaped from and avoid re entry burn up, by never re-entering. Ok i took it to far ...its neat! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zaphod222 Posted January 9, 2013 #11 Share Posted January 9, 2013 Why call it "UFO"? This is simply a Zeppelin, one of the oldest technologies. A modern version of the Hindenburgh, nothing more. It is ridiculous to insinuate SciFi technology when basically this is just a modern balloon. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marcos anthony toledo Posted January 9, 2013 #12 Share Posted January 9, 2013 Lets bring backe commerial at a gasZepperlin for world wide cargo and tourist travel what a way to tour the world what a gas and lets use Hydrogen as the fuel safer than gasoline and more plentyful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paperdyer Posted January 9, 2013 #13 Share Posted January 9, 2013 Lets bring backe commerial at a gasZepperlin for world wide cargo and tourist travel what a way to tour the world what a gas and lets use Hydrogen as the fuel safer than gasoline and more plentyful. Well in Hindenburg comes to mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Dave Posted January 9, 2013 #14 Share Posted January 9, 2013 (edited) Very cool for a commercial cargo mover but military applications? Seems like it would be an easy target, slow,big and full of compressed gas. Imagine it full of drones, drone carrier flying high above, better? Edit: Oh Pentagon is in with this well then it gets a hell of alot better! Edited January 9, 2013 by Nuke_em Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taun Posted January 9, 2013 #15 Share Posted January 9, 2013 (edited) Lets bring backe commerial at a gasZepperlin for world wide cargo and tourist travel what a way to tour the world what a gas and lets use Hydrogen as the fuel safer than gasoline and more plentyful. Hydrogen is definitly NOT safer than gasoline... If anything it is much more hazardous... Helium or a helium/mix is the way to go... Edited January 9, 2013 by Taun Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+DieChecker Posted January 9, 2013 #16 Share Posted January 9, 2013 The problem with Helium is that it only provides one fourth the lift that hydrogen does. If this is going to be a cargo vehicle with internal storage, it will probably have to use hydrogen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starseed hybrid 1111 Posted January 9, 2013 #17 Share Posted January 9, 2013 thats interesting it really is but besides what you guys say its intentions are what are your other guys intentions?any secret intentions or missions or etc behing it???because i find it really hard that you guys bare so loving and caring for the people as a whole.when it comes to any type of technology made from the arm services,government it always raises questions and red flags and wonder is there a secret agenda behind its so called purpose or creation.not that i'm expecting a honest answer from any of the government agencies they never been honest and would they start now right.its okay though there are good forces out there that really do have humanity best interest at heart and really do care for humanity as a whole. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southron_98 Posted January 10, 2013 #18 Share Posted January 10, 2013 Hydrogen is definitly NOT safer than gasoline... If anything it is much more hazardous... Helium or a helium/mix is the way to go... There is no risk to the environment from hydrogen, because it is not toxic or corrosive. It is not any more dangerous than gasoline, natural gas or kerosene, based on testing. Hydrogen has been perceived by the public as a dangerous and explosive gas. Most other fuels are explosive as well, but hydrogen has certain properties that make it safer, in some cases, and which actually make it preferable over other gases by industrial companies. It does not cover the ground the way gasoline does. The explosion hazard does not last for more than a few seconds after a spill if it occurs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southron_98 Posted January 10, 2013 #19 Share Posted January 10, 2013 What I found interesting and apparentedly no one else would be the descrition of this in flight. "...Sightings take place near cities and on Interstate highways -- They are seen at low altitude in plain sight of eyewitnesses -- They fly at extremely low speed or hover in plain sight of eyewitnesses -- The vehicles sometime fly with easily noticeable bright lights -- either blinding white lights, or have "bright disco lights" that usually flash combinations of red, green or blue..." ".... Often, both craft are observed as totally silent, and at other times as having a droning type sound. They have been reported as illuminated like a carnival ride, normally with brighter lights on the leading edge than the trailing edge. And again the opposite applies, for equally they have been witnessed as just a gray or black metallic looking shape, gliding through the sky...". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Majikwayz Posted January 10, 2013 #20 Share Posted January 10, 2013 WOW....thats awesome!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMolePatrol Posted January 10, 2013 #21 Share Posted January 10, 2013 Reminds me of the airship on Wall-E. Are our RedBox's taking over BlockBuster? Is self-checkout convienient when shopping at grocery stores? Isn't it badass we can wave our hands infront of the paper towel machine and it replies with a nice dry sheet of paper? Won't it be badass when you can wake up and robots and mechanisms take care of every single chore in your life, to the point where you get chuddy buddy and your bones look like flimy fish skeletons? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nothinglizx2 Posted January 11, 2013 #22 Share Posted January 11, 2013 o good a giant watermelon with shoes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s33ker Posted January 11, 2013 #23 Share Posted January 11, 2013 waayyyyyyyyyy coooollll Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redbundy Posted January 11, 2013 #24 Share Posted January 11, 2013 ... also moves at a fraction of the speed... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cherokee Wolf Posted January 12, 2013 #25 Share Posted January 12, 2013 Very cool! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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