European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - April 17, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Rebirth of the map continued from Page 13 the War used zeppelins were not Well suited for offensive in the aftermath of the War their development the German and British empires vied for the partly for the needs of travel and partly for Imperial airships were but to people whose ideas were conditioned by Ocean they Felt Airship desperately frugal about were prodigal with their Craft had private dining rooms with Balsa covered pillars and Canvas smoking rooms and promenade decks with enormous the final expression of the British Effort was the a luxurious one of the last things heard from it in october apart from a few radio was the sound of dance music As it flew out Over the Cliffs at Hastings on its Maiden voyage to it mysteriously crashed and burned in killing 48 of the 54 people anyone driving from Cambridge to not far from Raf has seen what appears to be the attempt by someone to erect a sort of twins ired Cathedral of corrugated the structures 812 feet Long and 180 feet High were built by the British government in the 1920s to House two giant the ill fated r101 and its the each crammed with More than 5 million cubic feet of potentially explosive across the Fields is the Parish with its imposing Tomb where rest the crewmen who died in the r101 those enormous Sheds at Raf Cardington Are the Home of Airship a firm that is deter mined to overcome the bad name Given to while the old dirigible were filled with ticking time bomb the state theart Craft of Airship Indus known As cant share the flaming Fate of the that because of the lifting Gas the sky ships Are inflated with a totally inert Gas meaning it cant while the zeppelins were inflated with which is highly Hydrogen has about 10 percent More lifting Power than but that is not Why it was used in the r101 and the helium and to a degree still in the the United states was essentially the Only source of Heli and it refused to sell the strategic although Goodyear operates four blimps of its own manufacture one in Europe and three in the states Airship industries presents itself As the Only firm producing airships for the world the sky ships have been fathered by Roger a naval architect and self taught Airship he got into the Airship business by Accident in 1971 and began a Long struggle that culminated in the sky ship a sleek Craft whose Only resemblance to a thousand  predecessors is the similar sausage shape of its Gas filled the sky ship which first flew in the autumn of was certified to carry far paying passengers last no the company claims it is the Only Airship in the world to have such a sky ship 500s Are engaged in a number of different tasks on three last a sky ship 500 was the Only aircraft allowed to Fly Over the olympic games in los Angeles As it broadcast live other sky ships Are being used for advertising and Public relations in the England and the in conjunction with a computer now is developing a compute operated sign using liquid electronic display mounted on the sides of the Airship and 86 feet Long by 12 feet the sign will be readable at night up to Miles using primary colors or even the Dis the stars and 8tripe8 new York times photo Airship industries director Brian Trafford with George Spyrou of firms play sign can be changed at will from inside the Airship or from the it is planned to use the sign to Blaze corporate Mes sages or bran name campaigns across the a plan is even afoot to use the Airship for sightseeing flights Over London this these would be the first far paying Airship flights since the the sky ship 500s sheer bulk 164 feet 61 feet High with a diameter of 46 feet and a volume of cubic fee is but its the baby of Airship industries present and projected its next bigger the sky ship is flying Al it carries 18 passengers against the eight carried by the other one version of the called the has been built to perform various offshore among them Are fishery including identification and in control of pollution Mari time policing and to according to Algy the head of Public relations for the the 600 has demonstrated to a number of potential buyers from foreign governments its ability to patrol far off Shore to carry out the functions of both aircraft More significant of naval patrol he said because of its ability to an air ship can perform Many of the functions of a helicopter while it has the endurance to patrol and remain on station for far longer and at less Cost than conventional he said it has a substantial Load carrying ability and provides a stable airborne platform for Many communications and surveillance he believes the 600 is the Only aircraft capable of launching and retrieving a manned the 600 carries a 15foot inflatable raft Slung be Neath its the rafts who enter the Craft through a door in the floor of the can erect two Stabilizer fins on the raft to maintain stability while being when the raft is about 150 feet below the its 30horsepower outboard engine is using an electric the raft then enters the water and the winches Are the crafts Crew then Are Able to carry out the boarding or other functions for which they were Low recovery by the sky ship is carried out by revers ing the he the list of military and government agencies that have conducted evaluation of the sky ship is Long indeed and includes the Navy and coast the French and British and the British Royal air Williams said that with the Sharp increase in International drug traffic and the creation of the 200mile exclusive economic zones around the worlds maritime coun tries Are faced with an immense problem in the policing of their territorial the he have led to sudden enormous especially on the part of in the sky ship 600 for maritime he said Airship industries expects to hear shortly whether it has won a bid issued by the coast guard for a full evaluation of sky ship it would include a five to 12month lease of the plus a program to train six coast guard pilots and three Crew that training would begin in he the most exciting recent he concerns a project the Navy is interested the Navy called the Battle surveillance Airship would involve the construction of a huge sky ship intended to provide surface fleets with an area surveillance system capable of remaining on station for 24 hours per for Long while refuelling and replenishing from the Cost of the project would be around according to who said that Airship has linked with Ameri Cas which would provide the avionics for the and that the two Are now awaiting a decision on the initial design procurement the project would go Back to the old Airship Rule bigger is better and would necessitate building what Airship terms the sky ship a 450footlong Williams said the four turboprops of the would give it a cruising Speed of about 100 Mph and it would have a six week Mission capability by refuelling from the Parent surface Fleet at intervals of five to seven there is basically no reason for the thing to Ever come he its double deck Gondola would be equipped on the upper level with a comprehensive flight desk and Crew quarters with the lower level designated for military the Large payload potential 35 tons will allow up Odate equipment to be fitted to provide a quiet and vibration free environment for its flying at around he the Craft will be capable of providing Advance warning to ensure total Force readiness against approaching both air and a comprehensive acoustic fit will allow the Airship to participate simultaneously in an Antisubmarine ant air defensive and ant surface offensive weapons can be carried and controlled through an integrated advanced command and control he at the heart of the Williams will be its capable of providing Haw like surveillance to a radius of at least 200 Williams said the sky ship will also be an air borne frigate capable of offence and defense and despite its massive size would prove difficult to detect outside Lineo flight almost entirely constructed of and with All reflective components protected by radar absorbent the radar signature will be similarly in a cruise the lower Power of the single engine remaining in operation will give the air ship a lower infrared signature than just about any other under the ability to close Down propulsion engines will remove almost All Trace of infrared he while the Airship remains not Only airborne but also fully As Well As a panoply of Sel defense equip Mit including missiles and the will be very if a solid Impact did cause the 7 000 would prove More damage resistant than any Oiler aircraft through sheer size he the technology is available to produce a surveillance and Early warning system that has not been seen after being Given funding for the we would expect the prototype to be flying within three he said one of Airship industries major goals Long has been to build a sky ship that would be capable of carrying Pas sengers on shorthand medium Range ferry Wil Liams said that if the firm develops the Blimp for the there would be Little modification needed to convert it into a 200passenger what Williams and his colleagues and it is Likely to come about even without the Navy is an Airship ferry service from City Center to City faster and More comfortable that either scheduled air lines or and competitively priced with if a Large passenger carrying sky ship were allowed to ascend out of London docklands and tie up at the Lon champs race course in it even at Airship clock up a journey time of Only 2w a Craft flight time is less but add to the flight the time needed for getting into Heathrow and out of Charles de Gaulle and the total journey would take in Cess of three the Faith of everyone connected with Airship Indus tries can be summed up in Williams belief that evolution of the Airship looks the concept has always been but the technology it has Long caught photo by King Cruger sky ships Are being used for advertising and Public relations in the Britain and photo by King Cruger the Airship 600 can carry 18 passengers the smaller Airship transports Only april the stars and 8tripe8 Page 15