Aeroscraft

[David Morris]

http://www.popsci.com/popsci/whatsnew/18ac893302839010vgnvcm1000004eecbccdrcrd.html

Even though the Aeroscraft dwarfs the largest commercial airliners, it
requires less net space on the ground than any plane because it
doesn't need a runway. The airship takes off and lands like a
helicopter: straight up and down.

This is not a Blimp. It's a sort of flying Queen Mary 2 that could
change the way you think about air travel. It's the Aeroscraft, and
when it's completed, it will ferry pampered passengers across
continents and oceans as they stroll leisurely about the one-acre
cabin or relax in their well-appointed staterooms.

Unlike its dirigible ancestors, the Aeroscraft is not lighter than
air. Its 14 million cubic feet of helium hoist only two-thirds of the
craft's weight. The rigid and surprisingly aerodyn amic body - driven
by huge rearward propellers - generates enough additional lift to keep
the behemoth and its 400-ton payload aloft while cruising.  During
takeoff and landing, six turbofan jet engines push the ship up or ease
its descent.

This two football-fields-long concept airship is the brainchild of
Igor Pasternak, whose privately funded California firm, Worldwide
Aeros Corporation, is in the early stages of developing a prototype
and expects to have one completed by 2010. Pasternak says several
cruise ship companies have expressed interest in the project, and for
good reason: The craft would have a range of several thousand miles
and, with an estimated top speed of 174 mph, could traverse the
continental U.S. in about 18 hours. During the flight, passengers
would peer at national landmarks just 8,000 feet below or, if they
weren 't captivated by the view, the cavernous interior would easily
accommodate such amenities as luxury staterooms, restaurants, even a
casino.