SInce we’re talking climate change I think we should bring back airships for short-haul flights. The fact it floats with little effort means less fuel is needed.
SInce we’re talking climate change I think we should bring back airships for short-haul flights. The fact it floats with little effort means less fuel is needed.
They’re very romantic and cool, so I’m for them. Obviously they have some major issues:
•Embarking and disembarking is a major pain. You need gigantic hangars and/or skyscrapers. You also needed a large crew. Perhaps we could develop some nifty machines for that part. Another issue is landing while it’s windy.
•No one wants to touch hydrogen, and helium is kind of rare.
•They’re slower than airplanes and some high speed rail. People want to go fast.
•They are very space inefficient. They don’t carry that many people for how big they are.
But it’s not a total wash. Hybrid airships combine a lifting body with lighter-than-air gas which makes them easier to land since they fall when unpowered. They might be useful for remote transportation. It would probably be easier to decarbonize an airship than a Boeing 737, and a ban on carbon dioxide would make them more competitive. Not everyone wants to go fast. Night trains are having a renaissance in Europe and people do enjoy cruises (I think ocean liners should come back as well - they could be wind, nuclear, or synthetic fuel powered). Airships were kind of dangerous in their heyday, but airliners were as well for the first few decades. Modern engineering, flight control, and weather forecasts would probably help a lot.