Russia's Flying Saucer Aerostat Set For Production

Not sure about the source (don't know the site) but I thought that this was interesting and may result in a series of "UFO" sightings which may be down to these "Locomoskayner's"

Forewarned is forearmed

LINK

"The government of the Ulianovsk Region in the Volga area has approved a five-year program to produce so-called "flying saucers" - a bizarre hybrid of a helicopter and an aerostat."

Hi interesting article you found there.

I have seen the Aerostat before a few times, and you know what it really reminds me of?

It seems to be very close in design parameters to this old British aircraft called the Skyship. Similar capabilities for both craft I believe.

Here check out some photos and related info about the Skyship in this old thread here. www.abovetopsecret.com...

It is really a great topic and I love it. However it is hard to find people interested in this particular aspect of aviation history / ufo history.

There are many interesting questions to be answered still.

11,000 people at once. Does that include in-flight meal?

Seriously though. Might be a great way to evacuate large numbers in a hurry. Gotta keep an eye on this story.

The company, however, plans to produce aircraft with a cargo-carrying capacity of up to 600 metric tons or a passenger capacity of up to 11,000 people.

Errr, 11000 people? I wish them luck of course, but if this is their plan and not an example of "fine" journalism - i doubt it will be any good.

Here are some original TASS details:

Russian region approves draft programme to build "flying saucer" aerostats
Sources: RIA Novosti news agency, Moscow, in Russian 1930 gmt 2 Mar 10; ITAR-TASS news agency, Moscow! , in Russian 1847 gmt 2 Mar 10

The administration of Russia's Ulyanovsk Region has approved a draft five-year program to set up local production of so-called flying saucers, or lenticular aerostats, primarily intended for transporting heavy and outsized freights, RIA Novosti news agency reported on 2 March.
The aerostat design, known as the Aerostatic Thermoballasted Flying Vehicle (abbreviated to ATLA in Russian), has been developed by the Moscow-based company LocomoSky, a subsidiary of Metaprocess Group, the report said. A letter of intent to set up an ATLA production line in Ulyanovsk Region was signed by regional governor Sergey Morozov and chairman of the LocomoSky board of directors Kirill Lyats at the MAKS 2009 aerospace exhibition in Zhukovskiy.
The ATLA program, which runs to 2014, may be finalized within the next few months, RIA Novosti said, quoting the press service of the Ulyanovsk regional administration. The program is expected to create about 800 jobs.
A report by ITAR-TASS news agency on the same day quoted the regional economics minister, Oleg Asmus, as saying: "Investment in the program will exceed R2.7bn [about 91m dollars at the current exchange rate].
"The report described the ATLA as a lighter-than-air craft with operating principles similar to those of an airship. Its skin contains two reservoirs - one filled with helium and the other with hot air - for improved controllability. The lenticular-shaped design helps reduce drag and improve lift.
The ATLA will be able to carry external passenger cabins or load slings for a variety of applications, including airlift of freight to remote areas of Siberia and the Far East, firefighting missions and emergency rescue operations.
The first ATLA prototype is expected to be built in 2010, ITAR-TASS reported.

reply to post by JimOberg


OP`s linked article states:

According to the regional government's estimates, the project will attract over $90 billion in investments.

Billions. i think that with such amount one could teach cows to fly. on the other hand 91 Millions seems a bit too cheap a budget for developing a craft of that capacity (600m³ ton and/or 11k passengers)

Originally posted by maoklein
reply to post by JimOberg

 

OP`s linked article states:

According to the regional government's estimates, the project will attract over $90 billion in investments.

Billions. i think that with such amount one could teach cows to fly. on the other hand 91 Millions seems a bit too cheap a budget for developing a craft of that capacity (600m³ ton and/or 11k passengers)

Wow this thing is awesome. The Russian's watched Flight of the Navigator too?

Flight of the Navigator Pic
Flight of the Navigator Pic


Too bad the U.S. Gov. will not come out and tell us what they have ... if Russia is announcing this I can only hope there is something planned for the U.S. come out party soon. Makes me think the TR-3B has more credibility...

"The company, however, plans to produce aircraft with a cargo-carrying capacity of up to 600 metric tons or a passenger capacity of up to 11,000 people. It will be able to hover, perform a vertical landing, move in a straight line with speeds close to 100 kmph, turn around and will need no special ground-based facilities to land."




[edit on 11-3-2010 by Smell The Roses]

The craft doesn't seem too... impressive, come on Russia you can do better.

The reason I think this is fake is the 11,000 passenger claim. No current aircraft can carry anything near that amount. This "machine" sounds like something from the future.

Well I'm having trouble getting the ATS media portal to open, all I get is a black screen, not sure if this is on my end or not, so I'll just provide links.

From the link in the OP, the company involved in this venture is (LOKOMO)SKY

I poked around their site and found these:

Сargo-carrying and cargo-and-passenger aerostatic flight vehicles

Vehicles with load-carrying capacity 40, 60, 120, 240, 600 tons helps to solve the transportation issues of large oversized loads in remote and inaccessible areas. Flying vehicles do not require ground-based organization. They are capable of landing on open ground without masts and winches, as well as take and give loads without landing, using a special lifting and transportation mechanisms. Various types of freight containers will make it to possible to carry out transhipment from air vehicles on railway platforms, road trailers, bulk carriers, lighter-aboard ship.

600 metric tons @ approximately 200lbs per person ...that's 6,613.86786 people, not 11,000 but still a nice crowd.

*edit to fix BB Code

[edit on 3/11/2010 by UberL33t]