Finally, a personal blimp – “The goal of this work is the creation an aircraft capable of silent, steerable, sustained, and affordable flight. No such craft exists today. Construction of the first human-carrying Personal Blimp is complete. Tethered flight testing began in Q2 of 2006. Free flight testing is expected to begin in August of 2006. The Personal Blimp uses hot air (rather than Helium) for lift and virtually silent electric motors for propulsion. To put it another way: the Personal Blimp is a hot air balloon that can be maneuvered about in nearly perfect quiet. Passengers in a Personal Blimp have a serene experience of flight unavailable in any other type of aircraft. (Note: Initial flight tests are using a conventional gas-powered motor. Electric motors will be added once these initial tests are complete.) “ [via] – Link.
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