Wednesday, September 26th, 2012
Stephan: When I was a little boy, my great aunt Winifred, a maiden lady of a Victorian type -- a model no longer made -- WWI nurse, and founder of the children's convalescent movement told me of her trip in a German dirigible. She said it was the most amazing travel experience of a long life of travel, although very cold because the passenger cabin was unheated and, although people dressed for dinner, they had to wear outercoats. To a little boy the images that her descriptions conjured up were magical.
It now appears that this very sensible way to travel and move cargo may be returning. It would certainly be much more energy efficient.
If you like the idea of cruising on a ship in laid-back luxury, but prefer the speed and convenience of air travel, there may soon be a solution. Drawing their inspiration from the airships of yesteryear, a new generation of airship-like vehicles could soon be making their way across our skies.
In a hangar outside Tustin in California, engineers are preparing one of the most radical designs for testing. The Aeroscraft, as it is known, is the brainchild of Igor Pasternak and has been made possible by advances in materials and computer control systems.
‘We are resurrecting [the airship] with new composite fabric structures, that are stronger, lighter, more versatile
