[laffs] NEW AERONAUTICAL TECHNOLOGY

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Subject:  NEW AERONAUTICAL TECHNOLOGY




 TKS TO GR8 REALTOR

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     Is this the future of aviation?
     
    THE FLYING LUXURY HOTEL


     
    Even though the Aeroscraft dwarfs the largest commercial airliners, it 
requires less net space on the ground than any plane because it doesn't need a 
runway. The airship takes off and lands like a helicopter: straight up and 
down. 
     
    This is not a Blimp. It's a sort of flying Queen Mary 2 that could change 
the way you think about air travel. It's the Aeroscraft, and when it's 
completed, it will ferry pampered passengers across continents and oceans as 
they stroll leisurely about the one-acre cabin or relax in their well-appointed 
staterooms. 
    Unlike its dirigible ancestors, the Aeroscraft is not lighter than air. Its 
14 million cubic feet of helium hoist only two thirds of the craft's weight. 
The rigid and surprisingly aerodynamic body driven by huge rearward propellers 
generates enough additional lift to keep the behemoth and its 400-ton payload 
aloft while cruising. During takeoff and landing, six turbofan jet engines push 
the ship up or ease its descent. 
     
    This two-football-fields-long concept airship is the brainchild of Igor 
Pasternak, whose privately-funded California firm, Worldwide Aeros Corporation, 
is in the early stages of developing a prototype and expects to have one 
completed by 2010. Pasternak says several cruise ship companies have expressed 
interest in the project, and for good reason: The craft would have a range of 
several thousand miles and, with an estimated top speed of 174 mph, could 
traverse the continental U.S. in about 18 hours. During the flight, passengers 
would peer at national landmarks just 8,000 feet below or, if they weren't 
captivated by the view, the cavernous interior would easily accommodate such 
amenities as luxury staterooms, restaurants, even a casino. 
     
    To minimize noise, the aft-mounted propellers will be electric, powered by 
a renewable source such as hydrogen fuel cells. A sophisticated 
buoyancy-management system will serve the same purpose as trim on an airplane, 
allowing for precise adjustments in flight dynamics to compensate for outside 
conditions and passenger movement. The automated system will draw outside air 
into compartments throughout the ship and compress it to manage onboard weight. 
     

    On a pressurized plane, windows like these would explode outward . The 
Aeroscraft does not fly high enough to need pressurization.
     
    The company envisions a cargo-carrying version that could deliver a store's 
worth of merchandise from a centralized distribution center straight to a 
Wal-Mart parking lot or, because the helium-filled craft will float, a year's 
worth of supplies to an offshore oil rig. "You can land on the snow, you can 
land on the water," Pasternak says. "It's a new vision of what can be done in 
the air." 
     
    Aeroscraft
    Purpose: Long-range travel for passengers who are more concerned with the 
journey than the destination 
    Dimensions (feet): 165 h x 244 w x 647 l 
    Max Speed: 174 mph 
    Range: 6,000 miles 
    Capacity: 250 passengers 


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