High-tech cargo airship being built in California

[Sherman A1]

TUSTIN, Calif. (AP) — The massive blimp-like aircraft flies but just barely, hovering only a dozen feet off a military hangar floor during flight testing south of Los Angeles.

Still, the fact that the hulking Aeroscraft could fly for just a few minutes represents a step forward in aviation, according to the engineers who developed it. The Department of Defense and NASA have invested $35 million in the prototype because of its potential to one day carry more cargo than any other aircraft to disaster zones and forward military bases.

"I realized that I put a little dot in the line of aviation history. A little dot for something that has never been demonstrated before, now it's feasible," said flight control engineer Munir Jojo-Verge.

The airship is undergoing testing this month at Marine Corps Air Station in Tustin, and must go through several more rounds of flight testing before it could be used in a disaster zone or anywhere else. The first major flight test took place Jan. 3.

http://news.yahoo.com/high-tech-cargo-airship-being-built-california-100513071--finance.html

[SidDithers]

1. DU rec...nt

Sid

[BlueStreak]

2. Brilliant. Just the thing to carry supplies into the battle zone

How hard do you think it would be to shoot this thing out of the sky? Talk about hitting the broad side of a barn. I don't even shoot and I bet I could hit this thing.