Archieves

ADA, IIT SCIENTISTS WORK TOWARDS UNIQUE MODE OF AERIAL TRANSPORT

Scientists at the Indian Institute of technology (IIT), Mumbai and Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), Bangalore are working in tandem to develop a 'Flying Ship'. This cost-effective mode of transportation will enable ferrying passengers in the Himalayas, North-east, Uttaranchal and other hilly terrains of the country.

ADA Director Kota Harinarayana said that ADA is collaborating with the project while IIT, Mumbai is working on the preliminary design. Rajkumar  S. Pant, Associate Professor of Aerospace Engineering at IIT is leading a team of aerospace scientists towards submitting a project report to the Department of Science and Technology at the earliest. "The first prototype of this airship should be already within three years," Kota said.

The main mission of the project is to maintain a competitive civil aviation environment, which ensures safety and security in accordance with international standards, promotes efficient, cost-effective and orderly growth of air transport and contributes to social and economic development of the country.

How it works: An airship is an airborne vehicle obtaining most of its lift from lighter-than-air gas, usually helium, contained in the envelop. Additional lift can be provided by vectored thrust from the engines but since most of the energy is derived from helium, the engines are needed mainly to drive the vehicle through the air and to provide power for the onboard systems.

An airship has usually has a three-axis control system to enable it to go to the desired destination. A gondala is attached below the envelope, inside which the passengers/goods are located.

Airships are fundamentally different from aircraft, since they do not have to rely on the relative motion between aircraft and the surrounding air to generate the lift force. Airships can fly safely at low speeds, and can even remain stationary at a specific point in space. They can attain speeds as high as 150 kmph and climb to an altitude of more than 7,000 ft above mean-sea level.

This feature makes them attractive for aerial sight-seeing and their operational requirements are minimal due to their capability of verical take-off and landing.

One of the most advanced airships available today is Zepplin NT, which has a 12-seater luxurious passenger cabin. The name Zepplin was derived from a former German Army Officer Ferdinand Adolf August Heinrich Graf von Zepplin.