FLOATING warehouses could soon take shopping to skies – with giant airships hovering above cities ready to drop parcels by drone straight to your door.
Developers claim the futuristic blimps could slash delivery times and costs, while cutting pollution and dodging traffic jams.
Its cargo hold is about twice the size of a Boeing 747-800.[/caption]
Lead designer Igor Pasternak, who has been working on the project for more than a decade, says the concept is finally ready for reality[/caption]
Pasternak reckons traditional transport is due a shake-up[/caption]
The radical idea is being spearheaded by Aeros, an airship manufacturer based in Los Angeles.
Bosses say a 555ft “flying warehouse” could be tested over LA as early as this year.
The enormous vessels aren’t just for shopping – they’re being designed to deliver humanitarian aid, ship massive items like wind turbines, or even act as airborne factories.
Lead designer Igor Pasternak, who has been working on the project for more than a decade, says the concept is finally ready for reality.
Insisting the designs are close to being built, Pasternak said the airships “will be able to rise and descend vertically and remain in a stable hover for long periods [of time]”.
He boasted its cargo hold is about twice the size of a Boeing 747-800.
Pasternak reckons traditional transport is due a shake-up.
Where planes guzzle fuel and lorries clog the roads, he believes his airships can skip airport queues, avoid jams and float directly where they’re needed.
The firm has already teamed up with a parcel-carrying drone supplier and fulfilment specialist Shipbots to bring the idea to life.
“First, we want to prove the commercial business model. Then it is about scaling,” he said.
The ultimate goal for the project is a whole “family of electrically variable buoyancy airships” – or EVBAs – delivering packages at lightning speed.
Pasternak founded Aeros 30 years ago, producing everything from airships to tethered balloons.
Those balloons were even used by the US military in Afghanistan and Iraq during the 2000s.
Today, Aeros also makes a high-tech blimp for border patrols, maritime surveillance and security – marketed as “game-changing” compared to old-style airships.
The new Aeroscraft design is built from advanced composite materials, with a carbon-fibre geodesic frame that cuts weight while staying super strong.
Part of the reason airships disappeared in the 20th century was because they were huge, slow and easily beaten by jet aircraft.
But Aeros insists its new fleet is different – cheaper, greener and quicker than rivals.
“60- minute delivery. Our airships navigate directly from the warehouse to the delivery area, with drones delivering packages straight to the customer’s front door, bypassing traffic congestion and difficult terrain,” the firm boasts.
“66% reduction in your shipping costs. Your customers will enjoy lower prices compared to your competitors, thanks to our unprecedented operational efficiency.
“The ML806 airship and drone system can deliver 4,000 consolidated packages per hour, significantly reducing shipping costs.”
“Your customers will be pleased to know that our airships and cargo drones are electric and produce zero emissions.
“One ML806 system removes 110 delivery vans from the road, reducing 4,535,000 lbs of CO2 emissions annually.”
The company hopes to kick things off with a pilot this year – using the Sky Dragon surveillance airship to trial drone deliveries across a small patch of Los Angeles.
If it works, Aeros will move to the big one – the ML806, a 262ft-long monster that can carry 10 metric tons. Crewed by two pilots, a drone pilot, a supervisor and a loadmaster, Aeros plans to have three in production by 2027.
Aeros currently manufactures a blimp – marketed as “game changing” air ship for maritime patrol, port border security, surveillance and intelligence
Aeros insists its new fleet is different – cheaper, greener and quicker than rivals.[/caption]
Aeros blimp, air ship for maritime patrol, port border security, surveillance and intelligence[/caption]
