History was made at Le Bourget yesterday when the spectacular Halo-Proteus took to the skies in its international debut.
This was the first time a stratospheric aircraft had flown at the Paris air show and the first time the aircraft has been seen outside its home base in Mojave, California.
Developed by Angel Technologies, the Halo-Proteus is the platform for Halo Network's high-speed, high-capacity metropolitan-area broadband communications network. With its distinctive - some would say weird - body shape and tandem-wing configuration, it is the platform that steals the limelight.
Designed by Burt Rutan, who is best known for his design of the record-breaking round the world Voyager aircraft, the Proteus is capable of flying at almost twice the altitude of traditional aircraft. Rutan's Scaled Composites manufactured the aircraft.
Circling at 51,000ft (15,000m), the Proteus will carry the Halo Network relay node, which is capable of delivering a variety of fixed, portable and wireless services including voice, data, images and video.
The odd shape is not merely a result of the radical whim of Rutan's mind's eye. He explains: "The strange look of the aircraft is very much a result of the job it's built to do. It has to be able to gather data on a continual basis.
"We've positioned the various elements in such a way that the data tracking equipment can maintain clear vision even when the aircraft has to bank at anything up to 30° to retain its position at very high altitudes where winds can be strong."
Source: Flight Daily News
