Isn't a 10,000 foot long Cable for a Blimp a Bad Idea? | FerrariChat

Isn't a 10,000 foot long Cable for a Blimp a Bad Idea?

Discussion in 'Aviation Chat' started by toggie, Dec 17, 2014.

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  1. toggie

    toggie F1 World Champ
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    #1 toggie, Dec 17, 2014
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    Government is putting up a couple of radar-filled Blimps in the Washington, DC area.
    They'll fly at 10,000 feet in the air and TETHERED to the ground with a cable!

    I'm sure they will be marked on the Sectional Chart, but it just seems like a terrible idea to me.

    Radar ?blimps? to monitor Washington-area skies | Fox News

    Radar ‘blimps’ to monitor Washington-area skies.

    The first of two radar-detecting blimps is slated to rise up over Aberdeen Proving Grounds in Maryland on Friday as part of a three-year exercise testing the integration of an Army air surveillance system with the North American Aerospace Defense Command.

    The 80-yard long, radar-fitted surveillance balloons, floated to an altitude of up to 10,000 feet, are intended to pinpoint beyond-the-horizon targets such as incoming enemy missiles, aircraft or drones.

    A second balloon, technically aerostats because they’re tethered and do not float or maneuver independently in the sky, is expected to go up by the end of January.

    One of the two is engineered with VHF radar technology capable of scanning outward to a distance of about 500 kilometers, a Raytheon official and director of the Army’s Joint Land Attack Cruise Missile Defense Elevated Netted Sensor System, JLENS, told Defense Tech in June.

    The radar scans 360-degrees and is designed to identify targets or areas of interest for the second aerostat, which uses more precise X-band radar, Douglas Burgess said.

    NORAD, which announced the Friday launch last week, said data collected during the operational exercise will be used to determine how well JLENS capabilities work with the existing NORAD security architecture.

    “This will enable senior defense officials to support a determination whether to transition JLENS capabilities to an enduring mission at the conclusion of the three-year operational exercise,” the announcement said.

    Writing about the program in DefenseOne on Tuesday, technology editor Peter Tucker suggests the Defense Department’s air security focus may be more on drone threats these days than anything else.

    He notes that a “hobbyist and activist” netted a warning from federal officials to keep his drones out of DC skies after a near miss involving one of his camera-toting devices.

    While many who see a giant blimp may automatically recall ancient film images of the Hindenburg’s fiery crash in New Jersey, the JLENS systems are a whole different kind of balloon.

    “They are filled with helium and air, which are inert gases that do not burn,” NORAD stated. “In 35 years of testing, a tether break has never occurred. During the exercise, great care is being taken to protect [Aberdeen’s] sensitive wetlands, flora and fauna – in particular the bald and golden eagles – both during site construction and during the exercise. “

    Privacy advocates will be happy to know that – according to NORAD – the surveillance balloons are not equipped with spy gear.

    “The JLENS aerostats cannot see people and do not have cameras onboard,” NORAD said.
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  2. MarkPDX

    MarkPDX F1 World Champ
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    #2 MarkPDX, Dec 17, 2014
    They have been used a bunch of places for quite a while now. There are several down on the U.S./Mexico border area. Busiest place I have been with one was Baghdad international, lots of military and civilian flights 24/7. Its put on the chart and they are pretty easy to see and avoid. I have flown into Andrews a few times and really don't care for it that much, too much potential trouble with all the restricted areas and whatnot around DC. Not running into the aerostat is the easy part of it all.
     
  3. rob lay

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    #3 rob lay, Dec 17, 2014
    yep, there have been weather and other balloons tethered for awhile. a few accidents, but not many. southwest Texas may be different than Washington DC though. Seems like someone breaks secure airspace DC every week. :D
     
  4. Bob Parks

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    #4 Bob Parks, Dec 17, 2014
    Rob, it's not a surprise that someone breaks secure airspace anywhere. The sectionals are impossible to decipher with the symbols and markings overlapping three deep and with the upside down wedding cake junque all over them, too. I'm glad that I don't fly anymore...and I suppose a lot of others that flew with me.
     
  5. rob lay

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    #5 rob lay, Dec 17, 2014
    ha, you would love our glass now and GPS! warns you with idiot lights basically, "hey idiot, don't fly into Class B!" :D
     
  6. kylec

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    #6 kylec, Dec 17, 2014
    I heard someone hit the cable in the keys attached to one.
     
  7. Bob Parks

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    #7 Bob Parks, Dec 17, 2014
    I don't know if it means much now but years ago I read where the term, BLIMP,came from. In the beginning when airships were a frame of canvas covered aluminum trusses with gas bags therein, they were called Dirigibles. Then came vehicles that were essentially just a gas bag with engines hung on them. The dirigibles where classified as Type-A vehicles. Those without ridged frames were classified as Type B-Limp vehicles.
     
  8. kylec

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    #8 kylec, Dec 18, 2014
    I just remembered that authorities want to use these as surveillance platforms too.
     
  9. Maciej

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    #9 Maciej, Dec 18, 2014
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  10. davebdave

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    #10 davebdave, Dec 19, 2014
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  11. WJGESQ

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    #11 WJGESQ, Dec 24, 2014
    KEYW has one. And I believe a 182 hit the cable a few years ago.
     
  12. Maciej

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    #12 Maciej, Dec 28, 2014
    Actually saw that one yesterday on my way to W29, immediately made me think of your post.
     
  13. NYC Fred

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    #13 NYC Fred, Dec 28, 2014
    Really?

    Who's watching THEM?
     
  14. cheesey

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    #14 cheesey, Dec 28, 2014
    they are not a problem... I have seen them in use as radar and communications platforms since the 70's... strange to see them floating over a cloud layer... not an issue especially if one stays in contact with positive control, don't know the rules or conditions for keeping them aloft... they do pull them down and adjust their service altitude as they are used... I think they were helpful in a rescue / emergency situation I was involved in years ago in a remote area... the large size of these new ones makes one think they may have more than radar and comms aboard, especially over an already heavily serviced area by radar... thinking they could have some defensive capability
     
  15. BMW.SauberF1Team

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    #15 BMW.SauberF1Team, Dec 28, 2014
    Never knew of these til now. Seems like only the GAO defines an aerostat as a tethered balloon. Next time I'm at a party with balloons that are tied down to whatever (or being held), I'm calling them aerostats, lol.
     
  16. glenv6

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    #16 glenv6, Dec 31, 2014
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    I don't think tethered blimps are any less safe than towers and may even be more safe due to the restricted airspace surrounding them. They should only pose a threat to any pilot who doesn't properly brief his or her flight, which is in violation of the regs anyway.

    I took these pictures in June of this year from my Mooney at 12,000 ft. near Deming New Mexico on my way to LA. I pass by there frequently and always try to get a look at that blimp. I was thrilled to have finally been able to see it. It is stuff like this that keeps you awake on an 8 hour flight! :)
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  17. Hannibal308

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    #17 Hannibal308, Jan 2, 2015
    If these things bother you because they are watching us...some are...I get it. If they bother you as a pilot, then you might want to question whether or not you should be flying. They don't even move. If a pilot can't read a chart to stay clear of these, I'm concerned about his or her ability to stay clear of other moving aircraft. Honestly, this is what flight planning is all about. If you stray and aren't sure what's around, then pick up IFR or flight following so you don't kill someone.

    Ciao!

    Hannibal
     

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