Good morning,
I'd like to mention that I worked as an engineer for an airship company for several years in the mid-1980's.  My company developed the Cyclo-crane and Aero-cran - a combination between an airship and a helicopter.  (It really requires a picture to give the idea)  Anyway I'm a good source for flight dynamics and physics models of airships including apparent mass, insolation and basic dynamics.  If anyone is interested I can provide pictures and drawings of the cyclo-crane and some other airships as well - I've got a limited selection of general publications on the subject in addition to my notes and reports from when I worked in the field.
 
By the way, I did a quick search on the web and was unable to find a picture of either the Cyclocrane or Aerocrane.  However, it was featured on a PBS episode and the video (which also includes a brief history of airships and some of the novel contemporary concepts of the mid-80's) may be available at your local library.
 
 
I also have detailed blueprints of the Navy K-type Goodyear blimp and a production prototype that shared our hangar (which ended up embarassingly skewered by the antenna of a New York City skyscraper.
 
Contact me privately if you are interested in any further information.  I will try to find a picture of the Cyclocrane to scan and post.
 
Nickolas Hein
Morgantown WV
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Sunday, September 21, 2003 8:43 AM
Subject: Re: [Flightgear-devel] heads up - aircraft reorg

On Sunday 21 September 2003 08:35, Erik Hofman wrote:
> [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
>
> > Are there any plans for helicopters, rockets, ballons and airships?
>
>
> The X-15 is considered a rocket.
>
> Also I've collected some NACA flight data documents of the U.S.S. Los
> Angles. I haven't had time to construct a JSBSim configuration files for
> this airship but I think it contains quite some good data.
>
> And there is already a balloon FDM available, and we have a(n
> experimental) paraglider model in the base package.
>
> Erik

I'd be interested to see how that works out.  I'd quite like to do a big rigid
airship too and although (atm) I'd like to do the LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin, which
was the next ship that Eckener made, the idea of doing the Macon and one of
it's F9C-2 Sparrowhawks is very appealing:)

Does the data you've got have anything about dynamic lift in it?  I've also
wondered about how to deal with the pressure height limits and ballast
handling.  Flying these craft seems to be, in some ways, harder than flying
heavier than air craft.

LeeE


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