Mark Hannant/DUBAI
Henri Giffard would have been delighted: 147 years after the French steam engineer first demonstrated powered flight, the American Blimp Corporation is keeping his spirit alive at 3,000m in its manned airships.
The fourth production airship designed and constructed by Maryland-based American Blimp, A-60+ number -05, this week celebrated its seventh anniversary.
The airship, which has clocked up 10,000 flight hours, is fitted with a five-seat gondola. It was launched from the famous lighter-than-air base at Lakehurst, New Jersey on 19 November 1992. Since then it has flown extensively in the USA, Canada and Malaysia.
Disaster
Airships are used around the world for civil and military surveillance as well as disaster relief and airborne law enforcement. Quietness of operation and environmental friendliness has seen demand for airships grow over recent years.
'Green' tourist companies also see the manned airship - the blimp - as a favoured way of transporting tourists across some of the world's most beautiful - and most environmentally sensitive - locations.
American Blimp currently has 17 airships in service. Typically these can remain aloft for more than 24 hours and carry payloads of 1,000kg at up to 3,000m.
Designers are currently working on mega-blimps capable of carrying payloads of up to 450 metric tonnes across the Pacific at speeds up to 160kph.
American Blimp is represented at Dubai 2000 by Middle East maintenance giant Gamco.
Source: Flight Daily News
