What started life as a US Army project is turning to more peaceful tasks like covering sports

Now back in its British homeland, that same Airlander that flew two years ago is preparing to do it all over again, only with a reduced maximum flight time of five days and an increased payload of over 20,000 pounds. Its designers’ new aim is to substitute planes on short-haul cargo flights as well as helicopters for specific purposes like sports broadcasts and even police surveillance. Should the upcoming tests later this year pan out as planned, a second Airlander will be built to perform those commercial purposes. Passenger flights are another obvious application, not least because the aircraft looks like it was yanked from the pages of a sci-fi comic. Or H.R. Giger’s sketchbook.

Although it looks fantastical, the Airlander’s shape and enormous size do have a purpose. Some 40 percent of the craft’s lift is derived from its aerodynamic form, while the other 60 percent comes from the helium gas within. Four diesel-powered propellers help with steering, taking off, and landing, and there are a further four pressurized air pockets that regulate the pressure inside the main helium compartment and also assist with takeoff and landing. As to the practicality of relying on an expensive and finite resource like helium, HAV says it expects the price of the inert gas to stabilize at its current level, underscoring the extraordinary efficiency of the Airlander. Its cost of operation is apparently between 10 and 20 percent of that for a helicopter, and it only loses 10 percent of its helium per year.

A paper-thin weave of carbon fiber, mylar, and Kevlar surrounds the helium bubble, giving it the strength and endurance that the earliest airship designs sorely lacked. HAV claims that the Airlander is capable of withstanding multiple lightning strikes and can have any punctures repaired while still airborne. It will be quite a while before the hundreds of tests and validations still required for airworthiness are completed, but the Airlander 10 already has the financial backing of Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson and countless other fans, so support for the project is unlikely to wane this time. And if you want one for yourself, the price is already set at $40 million.