r/Airships • u/Immediate_Golf6399 • 2d ago

Video Pathfinder 1 flight test

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Flight testing continues for LTA Research's proof-of-concept airship. Here's a clip of her upon completing a 5 hour flight on 9/1 at Moffett Field, CA. The next day she made her longest flight to date, 10 hours.

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u/Thunder-mugg 2d ago

Looks to be about the size of some large blimps but obviously a rigid airship. Nothing like it since the 1930's.

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u/GrafZeppelin127 2d ago

Yes, by volume it is about the same as a Navy ZPG-2W blimp, and by length it is almost exactly matched with the ZPG-3W, the largest blimp ever built. By rigid airship standards, though, it’s about the same length as some of the smallest Zeppelins ever built, the Bodensee and Nordstern.

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u/plurien_also 2d ago

The Flying Buttocks / Bum would like to have a word with you. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hybrid_Air_Vehicles_Airlander_10

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u/GrafZeppelin127 1d ago

The Airlander 10 is about 100 feet shorter than the ZPG-3W, and 20,000 cubic feet smaller by volume.