Kate Sarsfield/LONDON
Zeppelin's new-technology airship flight test programme has passed the halfway mark with over 300 flying hours chalked up. The milestone comes 60 years after the German company halted development of its original family of rigid machines following the loss in May 1937 of the Zeppelin Hindenburg after a transatlantic flight.
"We will conduct around 600 flight test hours in total and hope to receive European certification next year," says Zeppelin marketing and sales manager Dietmar Blasius.
The airship, dubbed LZ NO7, will be targeted at maritime and border control, fishery protection, advertising and tourism markets. Zeppelin has received five orders. A Swiss customer will take delivery of the first aircraft in early 2001, and the second machine will be handed over to a German customer later the same year. A further two will be delivered in 2002 and the final aircraft in 2003.
"The airship industry is a niche market for which Europe will account for 25-30 aircraft. We will also target the North American and Far Eastern markets once we have delivered the first batch of ships," says Blasius.
Friedrichschafen-based Zeppelin concedes that the structure of the airship will need to be altered to accommodate regional airworthiness requirements. "The airship is not comparable with the Blimp. It is an obligation for the US and Far Eastern markets to have a non-rigid structure, so we will be seeking partners in parallel to assemble the airship variant in both regions," adds Blasius.
The 75m (245ft)-long airship has a volume of 8,225m³ (290,000ft³) and will carry 12 passengers and two crew within its 11m cabin.
The primary structure, which extends across the ship's entire length, consists of triangular frames and three rows of longerons, made from aluminium alloy and carbonfibre composite, respectively, which are braced with diagonal ties to form a rigid framework. "The primary structure provides a 50% weight reduction compared with previous rigid airships and a drastic reduction in production costs," says Blasius.
The three 150kW (200hp) Textron Lycoming IO-360 piston engines, one mounted at the rear and two at the sides, offer a maximum cruise speed of 60kt (115km/h) and a range of 1,000km (550nm) at a height of up to 2,400m. The $8 million machine can fly for up to 28h without refuelling "and will therefore be a suitable option for observation and natural disaster monitoring".
Zeppelin has completed lightning strike tests with AEA Technology of the UK. A lightning strike was cited as a possible cause of the fatal Hindenburg crash.
Source: Flight International
