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From: henry@zoo.toronto.edu (Henry Spencer)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: Airships?
Message-ID: <1991Jun7.072129.8013@amd.com>
Date: 31 May 91 20:01:45 GMT
References: <1991May31.061011.12752@amd.com>
Sender: military@amd.com
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology
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Approved: military@amd.com


From: henry@zoo.toronto.edu (Henry Spencer)


>From: microsoft!t-scotta@uunet.uu.net
>... A large airship cruising at 35-40 kts, about
>double the speed of a cargo ship, would be able to carry a reasonable load.

I think the real problem here is simply the numbers:  to be cost-effective
at a speed an order of magnitude lower, an airship has to carry a payload
an order of magnitude heavier than a cargo aircraft, or else have some
other compelling advantage.  Given that heavy cargo aircraft carry 50-100
tons of cargo (in the absence of load-distribution problems), this is
going to be the mother of all airships.  I doubt that it is worthwhile.

-- 
"We're thinking about upgrading from    | Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology
SunOS 4.1.1 to SunOS 3.5."              |  henry@zoo.toronto.edu  utzoo!henry