Airships are just like fish in the sky

Some time ago there has been an Article circulating the web about "Airships that «swim» through the atmosphere" the idea is to use so called electro active polymers to bend and airships body so that it moves like a fish. This Airship is constructed by the Empa a materials science and technology research institution that is part of the ETH Domain.
But this is not the only fish in the sky. Prospective Concepts another Company from Switzerland developed the Flying Stingray an ultralight lifting body in the shape of a stingray but still using propellers as propulsion. You can read some more background info at MyAirship.com
But wait isn't there more? Of course there is. We proudly present the Festo Air Ray, a manta ray shaped helium filled rc airship that flies by flapping it's wings rather than using a propeller. Watch the stunning video of the Air Ray literally swimming through the air. A really innovative new concept that actually works. You can also check out the animation and a PDF with more detailed information and contact info. But the story about new and revolutionary concepts doesn't stop here. Last but by no means least, the Festo b-IONIC Airfish a remote controlled airship that uses an ion beam propulsion system. Yes you read correct those ion beam drives that are used in space missions are now applied to propulsion systems or aircraft. But besides using this just for propulsion the engineers at Festo also discovered that the effect created could also be used to reduce and even eliminate drag if the whole vessel would be enclosed by a ionized plasma bubble. When one thinks about airships and their huge surface area and the aerodynamic drag they produce this might be a solution that could change how we look at airships. Check out the video of the Airfish and the PDF going into detail and also containing some more pictures. We will continue to look at Festo in the future, since they are an active supporter of the Lighter-Than-Air community, right now also supporting GEFA-Flug in the development of the new 6 seater Hot Airship by donating their Envelope for tests. But more about that in a different post.
Do you know of any other revolutionary concepts, and research projects that try to copy nature or just try to go new ways in Airship design? Please send us a link or write a comment we are eager to hear what is currently developed out there. I have to thank Paul Bloch a friend of Airshipworld at openartist.net who send me the links about the Festo Air Ray and the b-IONIC Airfish, he is also involved in the Airship League activities, so expect to hear more from him and the League soon. Additional credits also go to Paul for his comment on the Aeroplume post who inspired the title.

Links:
Airships that «swim» through the atmosphere
About the Empa
The ETH Switzerland
The Airship League
Prospective Concepts
Flying Stingray
Airship and Blimp Resources
Festo Air Ray
Air Ray Video
Air Ray Animation
Air Ray PDF
Festo b-IONIC Airfish
Airfish Video
Airfish PDF

Airship Parade Video - part 4

Today we bring you the 4th and last video (for now) of the Airship Parade. We have some shorter Clips that we will edit and upload later but the main event is covered now. Following our photo and video coverage we will now dive into the teams, their companies, the advantages of hot air airships but also the disadvantages. We will give an overview of costs, and give information on how you can get one, either for lease or to own.


Also watch parts one to three:
Airship Parade Video - part 1
Airship Parade Video - part 2
Airship Parade Video - part 3

If you liked the videos, and would like to publish them on your website, please contact us, we will assist you in doing so. You can share them completely free but we ask you to provide proper credit to Airshipworld.

Airship Parade Video - part 3

The airship parade continues, now the competition starts the airships compete in the first airship bowling ever captured on video, at least we think so :-) The hot air airship perform very risky maneuvers and touch the ground a couple of times.

Video Part 3


Also watch parts one and two:

Airship Parade Video - part 1
Airship Parade Video - part 2

The future of the White Dwarf

The White Dwarf a little pedal powered personal blimp, was about to get refilled again last Weekend. During a safety overpressure Test the envelope burst and ruptured over most of it's length. We reported that Reed Gleasons was thinking about a new envelope and we hoped to see the little blimp fly again. But Reed decided now, that the little ship will get donated to a museum. Do you know of one that Reed could donate it to ? Here is what he wrote on the Topica Little Blimps List.

After a day of contemplation, I realized that I should look into donating the WD to a museum.

It was great to be able to fly, and to allow other people to fly, such a unique part of aviation history. However, it was designed to be flown indoors, and we were severely limited as to when and where we could fly it. I felt privileged to have ownership of the WD and obligated to have it out where people could appreciate it, but it was a big money and time sink. And sometimes a little scary.

We could patch the envelope to give it enough strength to be inflated with air and hung in a museum. I could take a tax write off that could offset some or all of the expenses of the last few years, depending on the perceived value of the WD. And a lot more people would be able to see it.

Much thanks to those who replied to my question of where to get a new envelope, but now I have a new question: What museum would like to have the WD, and how do you arrive at value for the WD?

If you have any help to offer Reed Gleason please send us an email we will forward it to him. If a Museum could preserve the White Dwarf for generations to come it would be great. To learn more about the White Dwarf check out our older posts with additional links to the Homepage and pictures.

Urgent News - White Dwarf envelope burst

The White Dwarf - pedal powered personal blimp - will be flying again

Airship Parade Video - part 2

Tonight we have the second part of the video from the airship parade for you. Now finally all the airships are in the air except three for which the wind was just to strong. If you have missed part one see it here. But now enjoy another 9 Minutes of hot airship flying in part two:
5th Airship Parade - part 2

If you would like to put those videos onto your website please go ahead, share them. If you don't know how just send us a quick mail. We can also get you the full original version of the video if you want to. We also have much more pictures of the parade than the 100 we shared if you are interested please contact us.

Urgent News - White Dwarf envelope burst

Usually we do not post three times a day but this news item just reached us and it is so important that we need to report about it. Please pass it on. Just the beginning of this month we reported about the refilling of the White Dwarf that was to happen yesterday. This is the email Reed Gleason sent to the Topica Little Blimps list, thanks to Ken Delacy for forwarding it to the Colorado Airship-list:

The White Dwarf envelope burst during an overpressure test at the end of the process of refilling it. The envelope ruptured over most of its length. The envelope was made in 1984, so it's way past its expiration date and the only way to have any faith in it is to test it to a much higher pressure than you would allow when flying it. We filled it to 0.3" inside the hangar, then took it out into the sun so that the urethane-nylon would be heated similarly to when we'd be flying it, and also to decrease the amount of helium it would take to bring the pressure up. There was some wind, and Gabe was holding the nose rope to stabilize it. One more tank of helium took it to 2", which is the nominal maximum pressure to allow while flying. Adding more helium brought the pressure past 4" and then it burst. The failure appeared to initiate at top of the nose load patch, probably due to the added stress of pulling on the nose rope (part of a realistic test.) There was a loud noise and the envelope draped over us. Pretty disappointing, but not entirely unexpected.
Any suggestions on where to get a new envelope?

If you can help Reed Gleason getting his White Dwarf back into the air please contact us we will forward it or write a comment in the blog.

5th Airship parade Bad Homburg - Video coverage

It's finally online, faster than we thought the first video of the Airship Parade Bad Homburg, showing the start and lift of of the hot air airships. Enjoy 8 Minutes of high quality video.
Airship Parade Video Part 1