Paris-based Aerophile (Chalet A320) is marketing its Aero30NG helium-filled tethered balloon platform to paratrooper-equipped militaries as a cost-saving and environmentally sensitive training aid.

Already in operation with the Yemeni army for the past two months, the system comprises a 6,000m3 (210,000ft3) circular envelope connected to a fixed tether. A gondola connected to the envelope lifts 20 parachutists to heights of 985ft (300m) for static line jumps and is pulled back to the ground by a hydrostatic winch. Aerophile is also researching a mobile platform that holds the winch. The system can be operated in gusts of up to 12kt (13mph) when extended, the same limits put on paratroopers for training jumps, and 60kt when moored.

Jerome Giacomoni, chairman and president of Aerophile, says the Yemeni system will pay for itself in training cost savings within a year. The country's army trains several hundred parachutists every year who will use the tethered balloon, rather than a C-130, for the first seven jumps required for certification. Cost for the system, including spare parts for 10 years of operations, was €2 million ($3 million).

Giacomoni says he hopes to sell the Aero30PARA to roughly half of the 100 armies worldwide conducting paratrooper operations.

Aerophile has sold 51 tethered balloons to date, mostly used for entertainment purposes at amusement parks.

Source: Flight Daily News

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