Uplifting: Manned Cloud's deisgners say it will offer eco-friendly holidays
Posted on 02/01/2008 5:11:43 PM PST by Stoat
With its fins and whale-like shape, it resembles Thunderbird 2.
But, unlike the huge International Rescue rocket in the puppet series, this gigantic airship won't be roaring off in a blast of flame and smoke to any international emergencies.
Instead, its designers say it will gently lift 40 passengers into the sky for a serene cruise of the world.
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Uplifting: Manned Cloud's deisgners say it will offer eco-friendly holidays
The airship is a floating hotel called the Manned Cloud, and - according to its designers - it will be capable of circling the globe in a few days.
The 20 bedrooms will provide the ultimate room with a view as the airship cruises at a height of 18,000ft.
It has a restaurant, a library, a lounge and a gym on the first deck.
On the second level there will be 20 passenger rooms, terraces with panoramic windows, a spa and a bar room. The airship is powered by a giant rear propeller and also has two further engines pointing downwards for vertical take-off.
However, if you're thinking of checking in, you will have to wait until its expected launch date of 2020.
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The ship could circle the globe in about ten days
Massaud, the French company behind the venture, is billing it as an ecologically friendly way to travel, leaving little impact on the environment - and eliminating the need for hotels.
Designer Jean-Marie Massaud's team has been working in conjunction with the French National Office of Airship Research on the project since 2005.
A spokesman for Massaud, AurÈlie Ullrich, said: !The idea at the heart of this project is that passengers can see fantastic places like Thailand and theCaribbean without the need to build ugly hotels everywhere.
"It could land for a few days or for a week if there is a big event going on.
"We don't want to be carrying around gallons and gallons of heavy petrol or diesel and we are looking into fuelling it with some form of helium gas."
Mr Massaud said: "The Manned Cloud permits you to explore the world without leaving a trace. Passengers can experience spectacular and exotic places without being intrusive or exploitative."
The cost of a night on the airship is yet to be decided, but it is likely to be out of the reach of most pockets.
However, it could provide the perfect hideaway for camera-shy celebrities.
Glimpse of the Blimp
• The Manned Cloud is almost 700ft long, 270ft wide and 170ft deep.
• It has a staff of 15 to look after the 40 passengers.
• Its makers say it will produce a top speed of 105mph and a cruising speed of 80mph. This means it could circle the globe in about ten days.
• It will be able to travel for 3,100 miles --or across the U.S. - before needing to be refuelled by a form of helium gas.
• Airships were the first aircraft to make controlled, powered flights, with French engineer Henri Giffard travelling 18 miles from Paris to Trappes in 1852.
More for Thunderbirds fans :-)
These guys know so little about the subject that they can't tell the difference between the lifting gas and the fuel.
I smell a scam.
Just out of curiosity, how can helium be used as a fuel?
Okay, now Chemistry class was a long time ago, but don't they mean burning hydrogen? How are they going to burn helium - The Mr Fusion 2000?
Cool!
I’m guessing that it’s merely a typo for “filling”....it probably wasn’t meant to be “fueling”.
Bear in mind that the quotations are coming from a French spokeswoman who is speaking to a British tabloid.....this is not exactly the vehicle for incredible verbal and technical precision :-)
Thunderbird 2 was always my fav.
Indeed...I'm delighted that their reading of the world economy is such that they feel confident in a project like this being a lucrative one.
Unfortunately, it's also a terribly tempting terrorist target.....they love to blow up stuff that muslim countries could never come up with or even dream of on their own (which is most things, come to think of it). Hopefully there will be appropriate safeguards.
Me too! I always loved the concepts of the different pods that they could select based upon their mission, as well as the way it was launched..
Surprisingly, airships are now more popular today than even back in their heyday. They are an excellent way to carry heavy cargo long distances both over land and sea. But, with modern technology, they are becoming far more practical.
1) Fire fighting. Unlike planes and helicopters, airships can carry much more water to a wildfire. Plus, they can not only drop it all at once, but they can “rain” for an extended time on a fire and the surrounding area, which strongly inhibits such fires. It can also land directly on a body of water to quickly recharge its tanks.
2) Communications. High altitude airships can act much like communications satellites, and transfer wide bandwidths of information. Even a single airship high over Kansas could handle much of the satellite traffic of the United States.
3) Combat surveillance. Airships could make high detail video record all outdoor movement in a combat area. Thus, any enemy attack could be traced back to its source, and where it retired to after the attack. Not just people, but vehicles could be monitored. It would be far higher than all but advance surface to air weapons.
4) Anti ballistic and cruise missile defenses. At high altitude, able to see both high flying and below the radar attacks from far away.
Gotta keep 'em in the air lest they build ugly hotels everywhere. Makes sense.
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