Konkurrenz ?
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SubStyle
Re: A 390 ...
Kingair wrote:das boarding hier dauert mind. 3 Std. oder so...
Dafür gibts dann eigene Fluggastbrücken, die funktionieren so ähnlich wie ein Rohrpostsystem...
Bernhard
For radar identification, throw your jumpseat rider out the window.
War offenbar doch kein Scherz...
Originalartikel zu finden unter: http://www.guardian.co.uk/airlines/story/0,,1723679,00.htmlGemma Bowes vom Observer wrote:Cruise ship of the skies
Airship
Sky liner ... airship technology will be used in Aeroscraft.
While Cunard and Royal Caribbean compete to produce the biggest and most luxurious new cruise ships, prototypes are quietly being built for a revolutionary flying alternative: the 'air cruise liner'. The Aeroscraft, using a mixture of airship and aeroplane technology, will be the size of two football pitches, with restaurants, bedrooms and a casino.
Gas inside the 850ft craft gives 60 per cent of the lift, with the rest generated by the engines and the aerodynamic shape. With a top speed of 174mph, it would be far slower than the 500mph achieved by a typical jet plane, but still faster than existing airships, which manage around 90mph.
It could be capable of flying thousands of miles without refuelling, but no higher than 8,000 feet, so the 250 passengers would be able to see landmarks and buildings below. At this height cabins do not need to be pressurised, though the craft would not be able to fly above bad weather, so routes and schedules could be affected. It could also land on snow and water.
'Aeroscraft will revolutionise luxury passenger travel,' says Edward Pevzner, spokesman for Worldwide Aeros Corporation, the American company behind the liner. 'When a traveller can have his own room to sleep in, dine at the restaurant instead of eating an airplane type of a meal, spend time at the bar or casino instead of sitting in a small uncomfortable seat, the luxury aspect speaks for itself.'
A small prototype is due to be completed within the next 18 months, and the first liner is due to be built by 2010. Several cruise ship companies have expressed interest in the project, and though the cost of flying has not yet been estimated, Pevzner says it would be 'affordable'.
Unlike its airship ancestors, such as the 804ft Hindenburg that caught fire and killed 36 people in 1937, its designers are adamant it will be perfectly safe, as it would use helium - essentially a fire extinguisher - rather than potentially explosive hydrogen.
Other aerospace experts say there is no question the design could work, but are not convinced it will pay. 'The technology is viable but it's no showstopper,' said Graham Dorrington, an airship expert and lecturer in aerospace design at Queen Mary, University of London. 'Standard passenger aircraft such as the new Airbus A380s are so efficiently designed and have evolved so much over the past 50 years, it's hard to imagine that a "lighter than air" system such as the Aeroscraft could be competitive.'
Nevertheless, Dorrington believes that airships could have a growing role in aviation. With the current problems of global warming and the spectre of tax on aviation fuel, Dorrington believes the craft may meet future requirements because they are more environmentally friendly and use much less fuel than a plane.
Dorrington, who has used 25-metre airships for biological research in the Borneo rainforest, hopes to launch his own ecotourism venture offering airship exploration of rainforest canopies within the next few years.
'Airships are so quiet, they don't disturb wildlife, so you can float a couple of metres above the trees and see orangutans and hummingbirds.'
For radar identification, throw your jumpseat rider out the window.