Hybrid Blimp Circles The Earth On One Tank Of Gas

Lockheed Martin's giant blimp: Long-range LMH-1 airship will carry cargo and people to remote locations around the world. The 120ft-long (37 meter) P-791 is a prototype for Lockheed Martin's 300ft long LMH-1 heavy lift hybrid airship. When complete, it will be capable of carrying more than 23 tons of cargo along with 19 passengers and two crew. Air cushions under the blimp can grip the ground or water, meaning it does not need to be tied down when loading. The company has revealed what the cockpit and cargo area of the airship will look like at its facility in California.Show more

They were some of the first man-made machines to carry people into the sky and became the ultimate way to travel until a series of disasters brought the golden age of airships to an end.

Now aircraft manufacturer Lockheed Martin is hoping to revitalize the use of blimps to deliver heavy cargo and passengers to remote locations around the world.

The company has unveiled a prototype of its LMH-1 heavy lift airship at its secretive Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, California.

Lockheed Martin's prototype hybrid airship, called the P-791 (pictured), is aimed at revitalizing airship technology, which has been used for more than 150 years. The vehicle, which is 120 feet long, combines the lighter-than-air helium filled hull with aerodynamic wings to lift it into the air. The company hopes scaled up versions of the blimp can be used to transport cargo to remote areas around the world

The 120ft-long (37 meter) experimental vessel, called the P-791, is designed to be a hybrid that combines lighter-than-air technology with wings other aerodynamic features more commonly seen in aeroplanes.

Its tri-shaped hull, which towers 21ft-tall (6 meters), is filled with helium, producing around 80 per cent of its lift, while the wings and motor provide the rest.

THE LMH-1 HYBRID AIRSHIP

The LMH-1, filled mostly with helium, will carry 20 tons of cargo, but can scaled to roughly the size of a football field with 500 tons of capacity.

It will have a fuel capacity of 5,000 gallon with a range of 1,400 nautical miles.

Its four hovercraft-like landing pads would allow it to set down on flat land without being required to be moored on large towers like traditional airships.

Current estimates suggests the price of the hybrid airship will be between £25 million to £30 million, or approximately $40 million.

The hybrid airship will have room for a crew of two, and up to 19 passengers.

Four hover-craft style landing pads underneath give it the ability to set down on flat land without needing to be moored.

The P-791 airship uses a vector thrust system to power it, similar to the engines fitted to the F22 Raptor, which gives it far greater maneuverability.

It flies by wire using both traditional rotor pedals and a control stick.

Dr Bob Boyd, program manager for the P-791 Hybrid Air Vehicle, added: 'The air cushion landing system allows us to take off and land from remote areas including sand, snow, dirt or even water.

'These environments don't require any infrastructure for take-off and landing operations.

'Not only can we take off and land with the air cushion landing system, but it doubles in grip mode that allows the system to grab the ground and hold it even in shifting winds so we don't need any kind of mooring system or tie down as we do our change operations on the ground.'

He added the airship would also be highly efficient as it can fly two to three weeks without needing to refuel.

However, the prototype is just one third of the size of Lockheed's full sized heavy-lift airship LMH-1, which will eventually be 300ft long and 78ft tall (91 meters by 24 meters).

It will be capable of carrying truck sized loads – up to 23 tons – on top of the airships 21 tons in weight along with 19 passengers.

Last November the US Federal Aviation Administration gave Lockheed Martin the green light to begin constructing the massive $40 million airship.

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