- Skyship 600
The Skyship 600 is a modern
airship , originally designed by British companyAirship Industries , and now owned and operated byAirship Management Services andSkycruise Switzerland AG . The first Skyship 600 made its maiden flight in November 1984. Similar in appearance to theSkyship 500 , it is larger, being the world's largest currently operating non-rigid airship (also called blimps). The envelope is made ofKevlar and the gondola ofcomposite materials . Earlier models were propelled by twoPorsche 930 turbocharged piston engines, but some have been modified withTextron Lycoming IO-540 engines. One important feature of this series is thrust-vector control. The encased propellers can be swivelled altogether around, providing excellent maneuverability.Each airship has been tailor-made to meet the needs of different customers and this results in slight variations in size, performance and cabin configuration.
Airship Industries collapsed in 1990, and its assets were taken over by Westinghouse. The type certificates for the Skyship 500 and 600 series are now held by
US company Global Skyship Industries which was acquired by Airship Management Services in 2002.Most Skyship 600s have been used for
advertising purposes, like theSpirit of Dubai . In December 2007, a Skyship 600 was leased by supporters of U.S. presidential candidateRon Paul to fly with the banner "Who is Ron Paul? Google Ron Paul". Others have been used forsurveillance purposes, including during the2004 Summer Olympics . The Skyship's sister ship the Skyship 500 registered G-BIHN was used by the characterMax Zorin in theJames Bond film "A View to a Kill ".How it works
"Skyships are equipped with a pair of ballonets, one forward and one aft. These ballonets are air-filled compartments within an airship that compensate for the expansion and contraction of the helium, thereby maintaining a required envelope pressure. They can be filled, or partially filled, with air. Emptying of air is done through four valves under the envelope. The valves open automatically as the ship climbs, releasing air and allowing the ballonets to collapse and the helium to expand. On descent, internal trunking allows air to be driven in from the propeller ducts, and / or electric fans, and thus avoid collapse of the envelope. The ballonets can be independently filled by using shut-off dampers in the air supply trunking. One important by-product of ballonet operation is that through differential inflation a measure of pitch trim can be obtained, in much the same way as a
submarine uses its water ballast for buoyancy trim." [Rimell, R.L.: Skyship! Renaissance of the British Airship Industry, Re-printed in 2005 by Airship Management Services, Inc.]pecifications
* Length: 66 metres / 216 ft 5 in
* Height: 22 metres /72 ft 2 in
* Volume: 7,600m³ Fact|date=January 2008
* Cruising speed: 40 mph(64 km/h)
* Maximum speed: 65 mph(105 km/h)
* Weight: 5,500 kg when deflated
* Passenger Capacity: Up to twelve plus the Captain and Co-Pilot
*Service ceiling : 7,000 feet
* Maximum Range: 400 miles
* Powerplant: 2×Porsche 930 engines(255 hp each), Turbo Charged or: 2×Textron Lycoming IO-540(300 hp each)
* Lavatory onboardExternal links
*http://www.airship.flyer.co.uk/skyship600.htm
*http://www.blimp-n2a.com/ams.htm
*http://www.airshipoperations.com/
* [http://www.airshipman.com/ Airship Management Services, Inc.]
* [http://skycruisergroup.com/ Skycruiser Group]
* [http://www.skycruise.ch/ Airship Cruises]
* [http://www.skycruise.ch/ Skycruise Switzerland AG.]
* [http://www.austrian-airship.eu/ AUSTRIAN-AIRSHIP - European Partner of Airship Management Services Inc, President and Shareholder, Richard Waidhofer]Notes
www.skycruise.ch
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