This Is the $150 Million Futuristic Military Blimp That Went Down in PA
- Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:40pm by
Jonathon M. Seidl
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PITTSBURGH (The Blaze/AP) — A remote-controlled, unmanned reconnaissance blimp launched from Ohio by defense contractor Lockheed Martin was brought down Wednesday in a controlled descent in the woods of southwestern Pennsylvania after it was unable to climb to the desired altitude:
The HALE-D blimp was designed to float above the jet stream at 60,000 feet and can be used for reconnaissance, intelligence and other purposes often accomplished by satellites, but at lower cost. The blimp was being tested as a communications relay device as part of a contract Lockheed Martin has with the Army’s Space and Missile Defense Command in Huntsville, Ala., Lockheed spokesman Keith Little told The Associated Press.
According to Business Insider, the futuristic blimp costs $150 million.
Photo: Lockheed Martin
The blimp got to 32,000 feet but couldn’t climb higher, so controllers in Akron, Ohio, decided to bring it down with a “controlled descent” in a sparsely populated area, some heavy woods near New Freeport, about 45 miles southeast of Pittsburgh.
The ship is 270 feet long, 70 feet in diameter and filled with helium and air, which were released gradually to bring the ship to Earth.
“There is no way for the airship to come down with it all filled,” Little said. “That’s how we bring it down.”
Photo: Lockheed Martin
The ship was launched from a former Goodyear blimp air dock in Akron that Lockheed bought years ago. The defense contractor has been making lighter-than-air vehicles for more than 80 years, Little said.
Had the test craft performed as desired, it would have stayed in the air for four to 10 days at the highest altitude, then never flown again. Instead, it was brought down around 8:30 a.m. Wednesday. Lockheed officials were at the scene recovering the blimp, which Little said will be brought back to Akron so the defect can be investigated.
Local and state agencies, as well as the Federal Aviation Administration, also responded.
Photo: Lockheed Martin
Police say no injuries were reported and no property on the ground was damaged. Little said the blimp was caught in trees about 40 feet high and Lockheed was working with the other agencies at the scene to bring it down with minimal damage.
The blimp is guided by two propellers powered by solar panels on its exterior. Researchers were going to try to bounce radio signals off it as part of the test.
Once Lockheed determines what kept the blimp from climbing, the Army must decide whether to go forward with the project or try something else, Little said.
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Comments (213)
DasMouse
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:19pmi think the guys on Mythbusters built one just like that for $50….and theirs stayed in the air.
Report Post »jlcook
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:24pmHey yea, did’nt the Mythbusters work for the administration once, I smell something fishy.
Report Post »912er
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:39pm“Futuristic” & “Blimp” should not be in the same sentence….
Report Post »912er
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:43pmHALE-D “High Altitude Large Expense – Disaster”… works for me…
Report Post »De minimus
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:00pmYeah but the difference is that you can trust them.
Report Post »chazman
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:03pm$150 Million and only flies once? Who built this thing? Howard Hughes? Instead of the Spruce Goose we can call it the HALE FAIL or the Mylar Mess!
Report Post »vtxphantom
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:19pmBlimps are not much use today, on the earth. Maybe on mars or titan. More late 19 and early 20 century that is not practical, but what the hey, it’s tax payer money. I wish the people in government would grow up
Report Post »MidWestMom
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:31pm@ chazman
My thoughts exactly.
Report Post »beckisnuts
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:31pmHow fascinating. But where is the story on the vile child abuser Warren Jeffs and his evil FLDS church? CNN, ABC, and a host of other media outlets have been reporting on it all week. Even some of the staff at The Blaze wonder why the story is being ignored. Interesting.
Blaze = Glenn Beck’s version of Pravda???
Report Post »crazedbanshee
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:33pmThis is why the shut down NASA…For futuristic projects like blimps, it makes total sense, cant you guys see….No, me either.
Report Post »Susan Harkins
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:51pmWow!
You taxpayers here on The Blaze, really come up with some totally cool but disfunctional stuff! So, since this blimp belongs to you guys, I am wondering what you are going to call it: Oblimpo? Obumbo? Oflupo?
Report Post »beckisnuts
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:53pmNASA is under attack by Obama and it’s a shame. But he probably thinks there‘ll be more money for social programs if we’re not “wasting” time on scientific research. Personally, I’ll be ecstatic when old big ears is out of office.
Report Post »jcannon98188
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 3:28pmLOL a blimp? Futuristic? Maybe a flying fortress, or a floating island, now THAT would be awesome. But a blimp? And a failure of one at that.
Report Post »RavenGlenn
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 3:39pm@BECKISNUTS
If you haven’t noticed by now, this site is usually for the stories that the other places aren’t covering. If every other news outlet has the story, then why does this one need to carry it? Go check out Fox News, CNN, MSNBC, etc if you want the news that all the main stream media is covering.
Report Post »SpankDaMonkey
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 3:43pm.
Report Post »I‘ve seen better ballons in a Macy’s parade. $150m, the Damn thing didn’t even have a Cape! ……
Jediusetheforce
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 4:03pmWhat a joke and a waste of money…Another wasteful spending military job. Its time to cut Military spending..Your next
Report Post »BehindBlueEyes
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 4:15pmAmerica has too many blimps. I see them them everywhere around town eating ice cream.
Report Post »dont tread
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 4:30pmThing is awesome!
Report Post »smithclar3nc3
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 4:32pmWhat kind of Recon was this 150,000,000 dollars waste of tax money doing over PA.
Report Post »pentavirate
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 4:45pmIt’s interesting. I‘ve been a conservative my whole life and I’m definitely not for government waste, but the knee-jerk reaction to this technology is beyond ignorant. Read a book or at least a webpage before blasting something you don’t understand. I don’t know much about this project but aerostats in general are saving lives and money every single day in both fronts of the war on terror. Isn’t it a good thing when the government uses our tax payer dollars more efficiently to get the same or better results than the way it used to be done? This flight was a failure but it doesn’t mean all aerostats are.
Report Post »Anonymous T. Irrelevant
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 5:03pm“How fascinating. But where is the story on the vile child abuser Warren Jeffs and his evil FLDS church?”
Report Post »——————————————————————-
STILL gnawing on that old bone? Give it up. Nobody cares.
jhaydeng
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 7:47pmAre we still in the 40′s really a zeppelin?
Report Post »proliance
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 9:06pmThe unwashed masses are piling on the idea of a lighter than air vehicle because they don’t have a clue.
How much do you think it costs to have a squadron of TR-1s, Predators or Reapers or similar reconnaissance aircraft above Fallujah or Kabul, uninterrupted for a month? Eyes in the sky are the key to winning battles and this blimp will be able to do it cheaply and safely.
Report Post »Hobbs57
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 10:20pmFor all of you who somehow missed the idea of reconnaissance and more importantly, doing the work of satellites, this is really an excellent technology in the way of defense. Think about it, say we needed to have a satellite a specific job and a special mission. To get a satellite up and have its use exclusively for a specific mission or purpose, especially a temporary one, just isn’t realistic. If they could get one of these blimps up at 60,000 feet, in say a day or less, imagine the uses of it. If any of you have realized, a majority of the technology’s you use everyday are a result of active satellites. Especially if those propellers can move it into position, which I suspect they are for.
Report Post »Some of the greatest technologies of today are a result of military technology. Specifically, GPS. I remember being in the service back in only 1996 and seeing the HUGE GPS units. I thought they were the coolest thing and they only had had lines, altitudes, and you had to be able to read coordinates. Now my phone can show me a photo of the bus stop I am looking for, the time of the next coming bus and so on. Often times, these government contracts are co-opted, meaning the company matches the grant. While I Am certainly against government wast, I hardly see anything concerning technologies as this as a wast. This is what has and can keep us ahead of the rest of the world. Well, that is, if we don’t just keep giving the technology away, along with our jobs.
smithclar3nc3
Posted on July 29, 2011 at 8:27ampentavirate
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 4:45pm
It’s interesting. I‘ve been a conservative my whole life and I’m definitely not for government waste, but the knee-jerk reaction to this technology is beyond ignorant. Read a book or at least a webpage before blasting something you don’t understand. I don’t know much about this project but aerostats in general are saving lives and money every single day in both fronts of the war on terror. Isn’t it a good thing when the government uses our tax payer dollars more efficiently to get the same or better results than the way it used to be done? This flight was a failure but it doesn’t mean all aerostats are.
Which defense contractor do you work for……the idea is sound but the cost isn‘t the entire project could have been done for pennied on the dollar instead they used this as an opportunity to line some political allie’s pockets with tax dollars. More to the point give to age in which we live a the scale of this zepelin could have been dramaticly smaller and still accomplish the desired missions.
Report Post »No levele headed American who doesn’t standf to gain something from this can defend it .
150,000,000 dollar lead zepelin. if we weren’t in such dire straits economically it would be funny…..SADLY THAT ISN’T THE CASE.
jlcook
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:18pmDidn‘t the Germans try this in the 30’s, that ended well. They are better used as a billboard, the droans have the market on that any way.
Report Post »WitegaSchadde
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:57pmThe Germans built Dirigibles not Blimps. Zeppelin was the company that built the Hindenburg. Dirigibles are still built in Germany today quite successfully. There were over 100 airships built by Zeppelin before the Hindenburg disaster.
Report Post »Mil-Dot
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:08pmGood, I am glad it crashed. It was nothing other than a 24/7 aerial spy platform to be used against the American people. Good riddence-ha ha ha
Report Post »jlcook
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:21pm@WITEGASHADDE, Thanks for the history lesson, it was in jest didn’t think it warrented it, but thanks anyhow.
Report Post »Cocheta
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 3:12pmMIL DOT,
Even at 35,000 feet, big silver blimps are easy to see. I’m far more concerned about UAVs, big and small, being used to spy on our own citizens. If it isn’t already happening, it will. We already have surveillance cameras just about everywhere. UAVs are far more versatile than fixed surveillance locations and a natural choice for nosey bureaucrats.
I’ve proposed a Constitutional Amendment that explicitly forbids the use of UAVs and other unmanned mobile surveillance platforms on American Citizens. Court orders will be needed to use them on specific persons of interest.
http://www.vince4potus.org/ – An Alternative to Destructive Professional Politicians
Report Post »bachstar
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 7:53pmGermany still builds blimps successfully huh, one they just built for Goodyear caught fire and burned up. The pilot got it to the ground and saved his passengers, he was not so fortunate son.
Report Post »jlcook
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:14pmWas this Obama’s idea.
Report Post »TruthisHealthy
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:15pmProbably was barry’s idea. He’s an anti-American treasonous muslim fraud.
Report Post »DianaS2935
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:20pmProbably, both are full of hot air.
Report Post »CyberBoy
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:12pmWhere can I put a bid for the next Blimp contract… I have no idea how to build a blimp, but I would be willing to build it for 145 Million, saving the government 5 million… What a deal.
Report Post »injunjoe
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:52pmactually I think i’ll get a 145 million contract to do a study on the feasibility of a futuristic slingshot….
Report Post »Lesbian Packing Hollow Points
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:09pmOh the humanity!
Report Post »SREGN
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:30pmI’m just glad that TV show-making-guy‘s kid wasn’t on this one either.
Report Post »commonsenseguy
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:09pmcan anyone say screw up, at a cost of a $150 million dollars, you would have thought they could have maybe seen the potential of it not working right and thought about how to bring it down with out destroying it by landing { crashing } it into trees,what a bunch of idiots, well no worries, the government has plenty of money and apparently is going to have even more when the debt ceiling is raised again, so they can build another one and crash it to,the taxpayers don’t care,remember we are to stupid to understand how things work, and apparently so are the people a lockheed martin ,but who cares,we have so much money to waste on cost saving air blimps,that tearing one up will still save us millions of dollars in the future, so who care .
Report Post »SamIamTwo
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:08pmI betcha they added more weight to it than originally designed.
Report Post »EqualJustice
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:05pmHey for $150 MILLION they got three entire hours! Such a deal.
Report Post »Bluefish49
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:11pmFYI…Lockheed Martin is Unionized….just saying…
Report Post »I.Gaspar
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:03pmThat’s actually a prototype of a car for the high speed rail projects the obamaidiots want to force down our throats…
Report Post »quickstudy
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:03pmJob opening at Lockheed.
Report Post »OUTRIDER WRITER
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:01pmI’m all for research and development, but this looks like one of those “bridge to nowhere” projects.
Report Post »I’m willing to bet that if you follow the money, you‘re going to find a special interest group who’s responsible for this boondoggle and/or a congressman who injected money into his district’s coffers.
Misdirection
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:24pmNo-way. Defense dept. totally… This airship is extremely advanced.
Report Post »GRAMPA-D-NH
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:01pmHow long can it hover over Tehran and what nuclear payload can it carry?
Report Post »South Philly Boy
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:01pmBack to the drawing board
Report Post »Just in time
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:00pm150 million dollars? For 4 to 10 days of flight. Thats money well spent!
Report Post »commonsenseguy
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:12pmnow, you just don’t understand, do you need obama to to explain how it works again and again, he likes that you know, you have to waste money to save money, man,when will you people get it !!!!
Report Post »{ being sarcastic }
Thrill Biscuit
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:59pmI call it ‘The Badyear Blimp’.
Report Post »oldchevyguy
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:58pm150 million for a blimp?Sounds like a deal we could live without
Report Post »NSDQ
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:06pma 150 Million dollar BALLOON!!?! Well I see and item for cutting, wonder if we have any 200 Million dollar pinatas out there to cut also.
Report Post »OverFiend
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:56pmLed zeppelin
Report Post »CHEWYRUNTS
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:01pmwhen will we learn from the Hindenburg? blimps wont work for anything
Report Post »Lesbian Packing Hollow Points
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:16pmLess lead. more aluminum and nickel.
Hindenburg used hydrogen. Modern lighter-than-air craft use the far less volatile helium. Also, the recipe used, to make the canvas skin of the Hindenburg reflective to reject solar heating, would be recognizable to modern pyrotechnicians as the recipe for thermite. Indeed, lessons HAVE been learned from the Hindenburg disaster. Pity none were learned by you.
Report Post »nysparkie
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:56pmOOOPS ! Roswell revisited.
Report Post »N37BU6
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:55pmI was so hoping their cover story would be “It’s not a blimp, it’s an alien spacecraft… move along.”
Report Post »republic2011
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:55pmSo, now that Obama is abandoning NASA, who is going to maintain all those top secret satellites we have? Russia? Good that Obama had another “old” idea… Let’s use blimps to do reconnaissance. Germans were doing that in WWII. I really fear the safety of our nation in this bafoon’s hands.
Report Post »bachstar
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 7:56pmIn this balloons hands. ;)
Report Post »ImmediateRealityCheck
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:53pmThis is a perfect parallel to the Obama administration- full of hot air, great with expectations, but fails to perform as promised.
Report Post »nysparkie
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:57pmTwo thumbs up !!
Report Post »MBA
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:02pmExcellent observation!
Report Post »commonsenseguy
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 1:14pmo how true !!!!!!
Report Post »MGB-CPA
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:16pmTime out! Think outside the box for one minute. If Obama’s (BO) real goal is to bring down our economy then this project was a success. Think about it. Why would anyone argue to borrow money they can’t pay back. Why would any bank loan money to someone who can’t pay it back. Wake up, this is about one world government … Tear it down and build it back. Redistribute the WEALTH so EVERYONE is the SAME … Is there any reason why Glenn Beck is the only one asking “WHY?” DON’T ASSUME YOU KNOW WHY!
Report Post »http://www.mgb-cpa.com
eubanksray
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 2:23pmthis comment is pricless
Report Post »MONICNE
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:53pmThis will save Billions in top secret Satellite budgets, so the Taxed Enough Already patriots should be pleased.
We will be able to clandestinely track & digitally image bad guys for pennies, instead of hundred dollar bills.
TEA
Report Post »mrsmileyface
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:45pmIf by futuristic you mean it looks like all the other blimps I ever saw in my life…..then ya its way futuristic. Congrats on coming up with an old new idea. I think.
Report Post »vennoye
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:50pmAND, only for $150 million!!! What a bargain!!
Report Post »DarkFire
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:54pmhmmmm, $150 million, wish i could have some of that shared sacrafice. So let me get this right, i think the hindenburgh crashed and burned, and WOW were repeating history again. ATTENTION, blimps are sooooooo 1920′s or for football games!
Report Post »ConstitutionalPatriot
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:57pmWow, someone better call Disney!! They stole that design from the ‘Rocketeer’ ! ! !
Report Post »UlyssesP
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:45pmWhere do the little green men ride?
Report Post »KickinBack
Posted on July 28, 2011 at 12:44pmBalloon boy 2.0!
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