Airship 1

ABSTRACT

This seminar is to explain the working of airship. An airship is an

airborne vehicle obtaining most of its lift from lighter-than-air gas, usually
helium, contained in the envelope. An airship is an aircraft consisting of a cigar-
shaped balloon that carries a propulsion system (propellers), a steering
mechanism, and accommodations for passengers, crew, and cargo.
Hot air airships offer a fantastic compromise between the ease of use
common to hot air balloons and the maneuverability of real airships. Like
balloons, hot air airships can be transported on a trailer. Their deflation does not
involve the loss of expensive helium which makes an expensive hangar
superfluous. An airship is a self-powered, lighter-than-air craft with means of
controlling its flight path. Aircraft like the MetLife blimp have a rich 200-year
history. However, the MetLife blimp is not a leftover from a bygone era.
Actually, it is a highly technical aircraft. The outer covering of the blimp is
called the envelope. There are three categories of airships, Rigid, Semi-Rigid and
Non-Rigid.
Airships, which get their shape only in cause of the pressure of the
lifting-gas inside the envelope, are called airships of the non-rigid type. All
extensions, like the fins and the control car, are attached to the envelope. The
driving elements are attached to the gondola/control car. Semi-rigid airships are
airships, which are a hybrid between a rigid airship and a blimp. Because of the
keel construction below the envelope they are also known as keel-airships. There
are many parallels to the basic construction of non-rigid airships, but also some
advantages of rigid airships are also used in this hybrid construction.
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CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION 03

2. AIRSHIP HISTORY 05

2.1. PRESENT DAY RESEARCH 06

3. INSIDE AN AIRSHIP 08

4. HOW AN AIRSHIP FLIES 16

5. USES OF AIRSHIPS 18

6. TYPES OF AIRSHIPS 19

7. PROPOSED DESIGNS AND APPLICATIONS 21

8. CONCLUSION 22

9. REFERENCES 23
Airship 3

1. INTRODUCTION

You've probably seen a Goodyear blimp providing TV coverage to a

sporting event, such as a football game or golf tournament. Blimps are a type of
lighter-than-air (LTA) craft called an airship. Like a hot air balloon, blimps use a gas
to generate lift. But unlike a hot air balloon, blimps can move forward through the
air under their own power, like . They can hover like
airplanes , travel in all
helicopters

kinds of weather and stay aloft for days.

An airship or dirigible is a buoyant lighter-than-air aircraft that can be

steered and propelled through the air. Unlike aerodynamic vehicles such as
fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters which stay aloft by moving an airfoil through
the air in order to produce lift, aerostatic craft such as airships and balloons stay
aloft by filling a large cavity with lighter than air gas. Most currently in service
are blimps, while a few semi-rigid airships with a fixed keel exist. Airships with
a full skeleton, such as the massive Zeppelin transoceanic models, are now a
thing of the past.
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Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company

USS Akron (ZRS-4) in flight,

Airships were the first aircraft to make controlled, powered flight. They
were widely used prior to the 1940s. Their use decreased over time as their
capabilities were surpassed by those of airplanes. A series of high-profile
accidents, including the 1937 burning of the hydrogen-filled Hindenburg near
Lakehurst, New Jersey, furthered their decline. Airships are still used today in
certain niche applications however, such as advertising and as a camera platform
for sporting events.
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2. AIRSHIP HISTORY

In 1783, two French brothers, Jacques Etienne and Joseph Michel

Montgolfier, invented the hot-air balloon and sent one to an altitude of 6,000 ft
(1,800 m). Later that year, the French physicist Jean Pilatre de Rosier made the
first manned balloon flight. While balloons could travel to high elevations, they
could not travel on their own propulsion and were at the mercy of the prevailing
winds. The shape of the balloon was determined by the pressure of the air or gas
(such as hydrogen or helium)., etc.
In 1852, Henri Gifford built the first powered airship, which consisted of a
143-ft (44-m) long, cigar-shaped, gas-filled bag with a propeller, powered by a
3-horsepower (2.2-kW) steam engine . Later, in 1900, Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin
of Germany invented the first rigid airship.
The rigid airship had a metal framework -- 420 ft (123 m) in length, 28 ft
(12 m) in diameter -- containing hydrogen-gas-filled rubber bags. The first
Zeppelin had tail fins and rudders, and was powered by internal combustion engines . It
carried five people to an altitude of 1,300 ft (396 m) and flew a distance of 3.75
mi (6 km). Several models of Zeppelins were built in the early 1900s. These
vehicles were used for military and civilian purposes, including transatlantic
travel. The most famous Zeppelin was the Hindenburg, which was destroyed by
a fire in 1937 while landing at Lakehurst, New Jersey. See fall of the Hindenburg to learn
about the ship and the crash.
In 1925, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company began building airships of the
blimp design. These aircraft were used for advertising and military purposes
(such as surveillance and anti-submarine warfare) throughout World War II. In
1962, the U.S. military stopped using blimps in their operations. Today, blimps
are used mainly for advertising, TV coverage, tourism and some research
purposes. However, the airship is coming back.
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Goodyear's original fleet of blimps in 1930

2.1. Present-day research

There are two primary focuses of current research on airships: 1) high
altitude, long duration, sensor and/or communications platforms and 2) long
distance transport of very large payloads.
The US government is funding two major projects in the high altitude
arena. The first is sponsored by U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense
Command and is called the Composite Hull High Altitude Powered Platform
(CHHAPP). This aircraft is also sometimes referred to as the Heseltine High-
Altitude Airship. This prototype ship made a 5 hour test flight in September
2005. The second project is being sponsored by the US Defense Advanced
Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and is called the high-altitude airship
(HAA). In 2005, DARPA awarded a contract for nearly $150 million to
Lockheed-Martin for prototype development. First flight of the HAA is planned
for 2008.
There are also three private companies funding working on high altitude
airships. Sans wire is developing high altitude airships they call "Stratellites" and
Techsphere is developing a high altitude version of their spherically shaped
airships. JP Aerospace has discussed its long-range plans that include not only
high altitude communications and sensor applications but also an "orbital
Airship 7

airairship" capable of lifting cargo into low earth orbit with a marginal
transportation cost of $1 per short ton per mile of altitude.
On January 31, 2006 Lockheed-Martin made the first flight of their
secretly built hybrid-airship designated the P-791 at the company's flight test
facility on the Palmdale Air Force Plant 42. The P-791 aircraft is very similar in
design to the Sky Cat design unsuccessfully promoted for many years by the
now financially troubled British company Advanced Technology Group.
Although Lockheed-Martin is developing a design for the DARPA WALRUS
project (see below), the company claimed that the P-791 is unrelated to
WALRUS. Nonetheless, the design represents an approach that may well be
applicable to WALRUS. Some believe that Lockheed-Martin had used the secret
P-791 program as a way to get a "head-start" on the other WALRUS competitor,
Aeros.
A privately funded effort to build a heavy-lift aerostatic/aerodynamic
hybrid craft, called the Dynalifter, is being carried out by Ohio Airships. The
company has stated that they expect to begin test flight of the Dynalifter in
Spring of 2006.
21st century Airships Inc. is a research and development company for
airship technologies. Projects have included the development of a spherical
shaped airship, as well as airships for high altitude, environmental research,
surveillance and military applications, heavy lift and sightseeing. The company's
airships have set numerous world records.
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3. INSIDE AN AIRSHIP

Unlike a balloon, a blimp has a shape and structure that enable it to

fly and maneuver. The following parts allow it to do this:

• envelope - contains the helium gas

• nose cone battens
• forward ballonet
• aft ballonet
• catenary curtain
• suspension cables
• flight control surfaces - rudders, elevators
• engines
• air scoops
• air valves
• helium valve
• gondola - holds passengers and crew
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Envelope
The envelope is the large bag that holds the helium gas.
The envelope is generally cigar-shaped, for aerodynamic purposes, and made of
a durable, airtight, lightweight fabric (polyester composites) that is much like the
fabric of a space suit. In fact, many envelopes are made by ILC Dover
Corporation, the company that makes spacesuits for NASA.
The envelopes can hold from 67,000 to 250,000 ft3 (1,900 to 7,093 m3)
of helium, depending upon the particular blimp. The pressure inside the envelope
is low, approximately 0.07 pounds per square inch (0.005 ATM).
Nose Cone Battens
The nose cone battens are supports that radiate from the tip of the
blimp. They stiffen the front of the blimp so that it is not damaged when it is
moored to the mooring mast. They also give the nose an aerodynamic shape,
and prevent it from pushing in as the blimp travels forward. In addition to the
battens, the mooring hooks are located in the nose of the blimp.

Nose cone battens

(gray)
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Ballonets

Ballonets are air-filled bags that are located inside the envelope. The
blimp has two ballonets, one fore and one aft. The ballonets are similar to the
ballast tanks of a submarine. Because air is heavier than helium, the ballonets
are deflated or inflated with air to make the blimp ascend or descend,
respectively. They are also used to control the trim, or levelness, of the blimp.

Catenary Curtain and Suspension Cables

The two catenary curtains are located inside the envelope along the
length of the blimp. They are made of fabric and sewn into the envelope, and
suspension cables attach them to the gondola. The curtains help to support and
shape the envelope and attach the gondola.

Flight Control Surfaces

The flight control surfaces are stiff, movable parts of the blimp that
are mounted to the tail. They consist of the rudder and elevators. The rudder is
used to steer the blimp to the starboard or port directions (yaw axis). The
elevators are used to control the angle of ascent or descent (pitch axis) of the
blimp. The flight control surfaces are operated by the pilot as he/she flies the
blimp, and can be arranged in a "+" or "x" configuration.
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Engines
The two engines on the blimp provide the thrust necessary to move
ahead. The engines are turbo-propeller airplane engines that use gasoline fuel and are
cooled by air. The engines can generate several hundred horsepower, depending
upon the particular blimp. They are located on either side of the gondola. With
the engines, blimps can cruise around 30 to 70 mph (48 to 113 kph).

The engines

Air scoops
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Air Scoops
The air scoops direct exhaust air from the propellers into the
ballonets. This is how the pilots can fill the ballonets with air while in flight.
When the engines are not running, electric fans move air into the ballonets.

Air Valves

The pilots must be able to vent air from the ballonets as well as add it.
This is accomplished by air valves that are located on each ballonet. There are four
valves -- two fore, two aft.

Air valve of a blimp

Helium Valve

The pressure of the helium in the envelope is adjusted by changing the

amount of air in the ballonets. Normally, blimp pilots do not have to add or
remove helium from the envelope. However, there is a helium valve on the
envelope that can be used to vent helium should the helium pressure exceed its
maximum safe limit. The valve can be opened manually or automatically.
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Gondola

The gondola holds the passengers and crew. It is enclosed, and holds
two pilots and up to 12 crew, depending upon the type of blimp (Goodyear's
Eagle and Stars & Stripes each hold two pilots and six passengers). Some
gondolas have specialized equipment, such as a camera, attached to them.

Blimp gondola with an attached camera (round object in front)

Forward view inside of gondola, showing

Pilot seats/controls (front) and passenger seats
 Airship 14

The control panels used by the pilots include the following:

• Propeller controls - monitor and regulate speed (throttle), blade angle (blade
pitch) and direction of the engine (forward, reverse)
• Fuel mixture/heat - monitor and regulate the fuel-to-air ratio of the engine
and the temperature of the mix to prevent icing at higher altitudes
• Envelope pressure controls - monitor and regulate the helium pressure in
the envelope and the air pressure in the ballonets by opening and closing the air
scoops and valves
• Communications - maintain radio contact with ground-support team and air
traffic controllers

• Flight surface controls - control the rudder (left/right movement) and the
elevators (up/down movement)
• Navigation equipment - compasses , airspeed indicators, radio beacon
equipment, GPS , etc. (Some blimps also have weather radar , and are instrument-rated
for night-flying.)
Blimp pilots are FAA-certified for lighter-than-air (LTA) craft.
Goodyear's pilots undergo a comprehensive training program prior to FAA
certification. In addition to piloting, Goodyear's pilots also serve as ground-
support crew, including electronics technicians, mechanics, riggers and
administrative personnel. A ground crew follows the blimp wherever it goes,
bringing several support vehicles, including a bus that serves as the
administrative office, a tractor-trailer that serves as an electrical/mechanical
shop, and a van that is the command car/utility vehicle.

Night Signs
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Some blimps (like Goodyear) are equipped with electric lights for
nighttime advertising. In the Goodyear blimp, the night signs consist of a matrix
of red, green and blue light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The intensities of the
LEDs can be adjusted to create various colors. The messages are programmed in
with a small laptop computer that is carried aboard.

Lifting gas

Any gas that is lighter than air can be used to create buoyant lift,
however many such gases are either toxic, flammable, corrosive, or a
combination of these, limiting their use in airships. Historically, hydrogen and
helium have been used in large airships.

In the early days of airships, the primary lifting gas was hydrogen.
American airships have been filled with helium since the 1920s, and modern
passenger-carrying airships are often, by law, prohibited from being filled with
flammable hydrogen. However, until the 1950s, all airships except for those in
the United States continued to use hydrogen because it offered greater lift and
was cheaper than helium. The United States (until the 1950s) was the sole
producer of helium (derived from Natural Gas) and was unwilling to export it
because it was rare and was considered a strategic material.

Methane and ammonia have been used in weather balloons. Ships

called thermal airships utilize heated air, in a fashion similar to hot air balloons,
as their lifting gas.
4. HOW AN AIRSHIP FLIES
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Airships are called lighter-than-air (LTA) craft because to generate lift,

they use gases that are lighter than air. The most common gas in use today is
helium, which has a lifting capacity of 0.064 lb/ft3 (1.02 kg/m3). Hydrogen was
commonly used in the early days of airships because it was even lighter, with a
lifting capacity of 0.070 lb/ft3 (1.1 kg/m3) and was easier and cheaper to acquire
than helium. However, the Hindenburg disaster ended the use of hydrogen in airships
because hydrogen burns so easily. Helium, on the other hand, is not flammable.
While these lifting capacities might not seem like much, airships carry
incredibly large volumes of gas -- up to hundreds of thousands of cubic feet
(thousands of cubic meters). With this much lifting power, airships can carry
heavy loads easily.
A blimp or airship controls its buoyancy in the air much like a
submarine does in the water. The ballonets act like ballast tanks holding
"heavy" air. When the blimp takes off, the pilot vents air from the ballonets
through the air valves. The helium makes the blimp positively buoyant in the
surrounding air, so the blimp rises. The pilot throttles the engine and adjusts the
elevators to angle the blimp into the wind. The cone shape of the blimp also
helps to generate lift.
As the blimp rises, outside air pressure decreases and the helium in the
envelope expands. The pilots then pump air into the ballonets to maintain
pressure against the helium. Adding air makes the blimp heavier, so to maintain
a steady cruising altitude, the pilots must balance the air-pressure with the
helium-pressure to create neutral buoyancy. To level the blimp in flight, the air
pressures between the fore and aft ballonets are adjusted. Blimps can cruise
altitudes of anywhere from 1,000 to 7,000 ft (305 to 2135 m). The engines
provide forward and reverse thrust while the rudder is used to steer.
Airship 17

To descend, the pilots fill the ballonets with air. This increases the
density of the blimp, making it negatively buoyant so that it descends. Again,
the elevators are adjusted to control the angle of descent.
When not in use, blimps are moored to a mooring mast that is either out
in the open or in a hangar. To move the blimp into or out of its hangar, a tractor
tows the mooring mast with the blimp attached to it.

The Spirit of Goodyear coming out of its hangar at

Wingfoot Lake Airship Base outside of Akron, Ohio

5. USES OF AIRSHIPS
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Because gas provides the lift in an airship or blimp, rather than a wing
with an engine as in an airplane, airships can fly and hover without expending
fuel or energy. Furthermore, airships can stay aloft anywhere from hours to days
-- much longer than airplanes or . These properties make blimps ideal for
helicopters

such uses as covering sporting events, advertising and some research, like
scouting for whales
.
Recently, there has been renewed interest in using rigid airships for
lifting and/or transporting heavy cargo loads, like ships, tanks and oil rigs, for
military and civilian purposes. Modern airships, such as the Zeppelin NT and Cargo Lifter,
use lightweight, carbon-composite frames that allow them to be huge, light and
structurally sound. In addition to hauling cargo, airships may once again be used
for tourism. So, the sight of a large airship moving across the sky may become
more common in the near future.

6. TYPES OF AIRSHIPS
• Rigid airships (Zeppelin is almost synonymous with this type) have rigid
frames containing multiple, non-pressurized gas cells or balloons to provide lift.
Airship 19

Rigid airships do not depend on internal pressure to maintain their shape and can
be made to virtually any size.
• Non-rigid airships (blimps) use a pressure level in excess of the surrounding
air pressure in order to retain their shape.
• Semi-rigid airships, like blimps, require internal pressure to maintain their
shape, but have extended, usually articulated keel frames running along the
bottom of the envelope to distribute suspension loads into the envelope and
allow lower envelope pressures.
• Metal-clad airships had characteristics of both rigid and non-rigid airships,
utilizing a very thin, airtight metal envelope, rather than the usual rubber-coated
fabric envelope. Only four ships of this type, Schwarz's aluminum ships of 1893
and 189 the ZMC-2 and the Slate "City of Glendale", have been built to date
with only the ZMC-2 a success.
• Hybrid airship is a general term for an aircraft that combines characteristics
of heavier-than-air (airplane or helicopter) and lighter than air technology.
Examples include helicopter/airship hybrids intended for heavy lift applications
and dynamic lift airships intended for long-range cruising. It should be noted that
most airships, when fully loaded with cargo and fuel, are typically heavier than
air, and thus must use their propulsion system and shape to generate
aerodynamic lift, necessary to stay aloft; technically making them hybrid
airships. However, the term "hybrid airship" refers to craft that obtain a
significant portion of their lift from aerodynamic lift and often require
substantial take-off rolls before becoming airborne.
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Rigid, Semi-rigid and Non-rigid airship types

7. PROPOSED DESIGNS AND APPLICATIONS

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The proposed aero craft is Aero Corporation's continuation of the now

canceled WALRUS project (see below.) This proposed craft is a hybrid airship
that, while cruising, obtains two thirds of its lift from helium and the remaining
third aerodynamic lift. Jets would be used during take-off and landing.
There is a case for the airship or zeppelin as a medium to long distance air
'cruise ship' using helium as a lifting agent. Airship passengers could have
spacious decks inside the hull to give ample room for sitting, sleeping and
recreation. There would be ample room for restaurants and similar facilities. The
potential exists for a market in more leisurely journeys, such as cruises over
scenic terrain.

The Aero craft Airship is still just a concept

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8. CONCLUSION

In this seminar I have presented the working of airships. The advantage of

airships over airplanes is that static lift sufficient for flight is generated by the
lifting gas and requires no engine power. This was an immense advantage before
the middle of WW I and remained an advantage for long distance, or long
duration operations until WW II.

The disadvantages come from the nature of the airship itself. The drag on
an airship rises as the square of its speed and the power as the cube of the speed
but in airplanes lift and drag increase together with speed so that for a given lift
the drag is effectually constant at any speed so the power required only increases
linearly with speed until close to the speed of sound: which is why airplane
development was critically dependent on engine development especially during
the years between WW1 and WW2. Given the large flat plate area and wetted
surface of the airship, a practical limit is reached somewhere between 80 and 100
mph (200 km/h).

The greatest disadvantage of the airship is size. As the size of an airship

increases, which is essential to increase performance, the problems of ground
handling become geometrically greater. The blimp remained a viable military
system only until the conventional submarine was replaced by the nuclear
submarine. Today, airships are used primarily for advertising where their size
and novelty have an advantage.
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9. REFERENCES

 www.myairship.com

 www.wikipedia.com

 www.howstuffworks.com

 www.encyclopedia4u.com

 www.airship.org