[QUOTE=BBC News]
[IMG]http://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/660/cpsprodpb/ECA3/production/_90897506_sbna_airlanderbadlanding2.jpg[/IMG]
The world's longest aircraft - the Airlander 10 - has been damaged when it took a nosedive during its second test flight.
The 302ft (92m) long aircraft - which is part plane and part airship - was damaged during the flight from Cardington Airfield in Bedfordshire.
The £25m craft is understood to have sustained damage to its cockpit when it hit the ground at about 11:00 BST.
HAV, the developer, said all the crew were "safe and well".
[/QUOTE]
[URL]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-37174417[/URL]
Least is wasn't too severe. Still, ouch.
Shouldn't have skipped leg day
Airlander is a neat idea, but I wish someone would build a dirigible in modern times. What I'd give to see a true-blue zeppelin plying the skies.
[t]http://i.imgur.com/zBxIQzh.jpg[/t]
While Airlander is certainly an engineering achievement it's no rigid structure the size of the Titanic that [I]flies.[/I]
[video]https://youtu.be/Mg-RPTiVa_Q[/video]
[editline]24th August 2016[/editline]
[QUOTE=Grenadiac;50939461]Airlander is a neat idea, but I wish someone would build a dirigible in modern times. What I'd give to see a true-blue zeppelin plying the skies.
While Airlander is certainly an engineering achievement it's no rigid structure the size of the Titanic that [I]flies.[/I][/QUOTE]
the goodyear blimps are now all actually zeppelins they just keep the name blimp because its iconic
Oh the humanity!
[QUOTE=Sableye;50939823][video]https://youtu.be/Mg-RPTiVa_Q[/video]
[editline]24th August 2016[/editline]
the goodyear blimps are now all actually zeppelins they just keep the name blimp because its iconic[/QUOTE]
I think they're semi-rigid, meaning they have a rigid keel but the entire envelope is a still a balloon - same as Airlander IIRC - where zeppelins are fully rigid structures that contain multiple lifting gas cells. They are basically flying buildings.
Compare USS Akron;
[img]http://i.imgur.com/alQLe7B.jpg[/img]
with a semi-rigid Goodyear Blimp;
[img]http://i.imgur.com/nbNiHLu.jpg[/img]
If you deflate a Goodyear Blimp, it will look saggy. A zeppelin with no lifting gas looks the same as a fully inflated zeppelin, because the structure of its envelope is provided by a rigid frame. The difference is that the semi-rigid Goodyear ships are cheaper to build and maintain, but aren't exactly as safe for regular passenger service, since a breach in the envelope can doom the entire ship. There's also just something awe inspiring about all that latticework.
Also, IIRC, a rigid zeppelin with multiple gas cells is easier to maneuver at vast scales than a ship with a single-cell envelope like a blimp's, since you can shift gas around for attitude control.
[QUOTE=Megadave;50939828]Oh the humanity![/QUOTE]
oh the huge manitie!
cas it really is a huge manitie
What is the point in this thingy? Like is it designed to transport cargo or something
[QUOTE=Complifusedv2;50940165]What is the point in this thingy? Like is it designed to transport cargo or something[/QUOTE]
Thats the point of most large lighter-than-air craft development at the moment - they're slow as all hell, but they have tremendous lifting capacity relative to planes of similar size and attributes.
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