Apparently the prototype of a heavy lift VTOL airship has been completed by Aeroscraft corp and is waiting for flight tests. Company - Aeroscraft Image Unavailable, Please Login
A blimp is a non-rigid airship, this is a rigid airship, like the Zeppelins which faded out in the 1930's, with vectored thrust.
Of course it's a blimp; it's in the old blimp hangar @ Moffett Field, CA. Must be a blimp! BTW: get ready for years of "flying saucer!!!" sightings..........
When will someone build something cool like the Magisterium Sky Ferry.. inquiring minds want to know! Magisterium Sky Ferry Diecast Model - Collectibles and Rare Objects - Cards Inc
This is what what may have sold DARPA on funding it... [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3l8VGFqnzA]Aeroscraft Military - YouTube[/ame]
It doesn't look rigid, unless that's some kind of all-enveloping transparent carapace covering what appears to be metallized fabric (mylar?). Of course, the rigid structure of zeppelins was an intricate light alloy framework over which was stretched "doped" fabric. This is clearly nothing like that.
Go to the first post in this thread, click on the link and scroll down to "First Float". You can see the framework through the skin. (The site seems very slow...).
I did provide a link so people could read up about it. Here is their page discussing some of their differences from past airships. The frame is supposed to be aluminum/carbon fiber. http://www.aeroscraft.com/#/aeroscraft/4567337667 There's also the following pic toward the bottom of the news releases I previously linked. Image Unavailable, Please Login
