Defense Department Tests Blimp over D.C.
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James Joyner | Wednesday, September 29, 2004 |
Defense Department Tests Blimp (WaPo)
Yes, there was a strange blimpy object flying over some government buildings in Washington before dawn this morning. But no, it’s nothing to worry about. It’s on our side. It was, in fact, a blimp.
The Army has leased it from the nation’s only airship manufacturer and outfitted it with sensors and cameras. Throughout the week, the 178-foot-long lighter-than-air craft will conduct test runs over the Washington area designed to determine how effective electro-optical and infrared cameras aboard are at detecting potentially threatening movements on the ground.
The equipment already is used in Iraq and Afghanistan to identify enemy troop movement, but in combat zones it is attached to a static inflatable device that looks like a giant, blimp-shaped balloon.
If this works, the uses could be endless. For example, it would be an excellent way to film sporting events.
About the Author: James Joyner is the publisher of Outside the Beltway and the managing editor of the Atlantic Council. He's a former Army officer, Desert Storm vet, and college professor with a PhD in political science from The University of Alabama. He lives just outside the Beltway in Alexandria, Virginia with his wife and infant daughter.
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Perhaps they could be adapted for trans-Atlantic travel?
And maybe they could even go for an "extreme" version, and replace the helium with hydrogen! Much better lift from the lighter gas, after all.
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