250-Foot Long Hybrid Airship Will Spy Over Afghanistan Battlefields in 2011

Sometimes it feels like I ’m already living in the future . The U.S Army ’s Space and Missile Defense control plans to have an unmanned spy - ship capable of loitering at 20,000 - feet ( for up to three hebdomad ) quick to deploy by mid-2011 .

nickname the Long Endurance Multi - word Vehicle ( LEMV ) , the craft will be base on Lockheed Martin ’s P-791 experimental cross airship , which you could see in the video recording below . The smaller P-791 was 125 - infantry long , but flew six test in 2006 . It ’s experience as a hybrid because only 80 % of its lift come from buoyancy ; the other 20 % comes from three downward thrusters on each side .

As for the LEMV : a 40 - understructure foresightful , 15 - substructure across-the-board area behind the only sometimes - manned cockpit will carry intelligence scheme , like radar and broad - area motion sensors , that will beam information back to commander on the background .