The Walrus HULA (Hybrid Ultra Large Aircraft) project was a

DARPA The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is a research and development agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the development of emerging technologies for use by the military. Originally known as the Adv ...

-funded experiment to create an

airship An airship or dirigible balloon is a type of aerostat or lighter-than-air aircraft that can navigate through the air under its own power. Aerostats gain their lift from a lifting gas that is less dense than the surrounding air. In early ...

capable of traveling up to 12,000

nautical mile A nautical mile is a unit of length used in air, marine, and space navigation, and for the definition of territorial waters. Historically, it was defined as the meridian arc length corresponding to one minute ( of a degree) of latitude. Today ...

s (about 22,000 km) in range, while carrying 500-1000

ton Ton is the name of any one of several units of measure. It has a long history and has acquired several meanings and uses. Mainly it describes units of weight. Confusion can arise because ''ton'' can mean * the long ton, which is 2,240 pounds ...

s of

air cargo Air cargo is any property carried or to be carried in an aircraft. Air cargo comprises air freight, air express and airmail. Aircraft types Different cargo can be transported by passenger, cargo or combi aircraft: * Passenger aircraft use the ...

. In distinct contrast to earlier generation airships, the Walrus HULA would be a heavier-than-air vehicle and would generate lift through a combination of

aerodynamics Aerodynamics, from grc, ἀήρ ''aero'' (air) + grc, δυναμική (dynamics), is the study of the motion of air, particularly when affected by a solid object, such as an airplane wing. It involves topics covered in the field of fluid dyn ...

thrust vectoring Thrust vectoring, also known as thrust vector control (TVC), is the ability of an aircraft, rocket, or other vehicle to manipulate the direction of the thrust from its engine(s) or motor(s) to control the attitude or angular velocity of the v ...

, and gas

buoyancy Buoyancy (), or upthrust, is an upward force exerted by a fluid that opposes the weight of a partially or fully immersed object. In a column of fluid, pressure increases with depth as a result of the weight of the overlying fluid. Thus the p ...

generation and management.

said advances in envelope and hull materials, buoyancy and lift control, drag reduction and propulsion combined to make this concept feasible. Technologies to be investigated in the initial study phase included vacuum/air buoyancy compensator tanks, which provide buoyancy control without ballast, and electrostatic atmospheric ion propulsion. The WALRUS could potentially expand and speed the

strategic airlift An airlift is the organized delivery of supplies or personnel primarily via military transport aircraft. Airlifting consists of two distinct types: strategic and tactical. Typically, strategic airlifting involves moving material long distance ...

capability of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

substantially while simultaneously reducing costs. A smaller scale demonstration was scheduled for 2008, when a small scale version of the WALRUS designed to carry only the capacity of a

C-130 Hercules The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed Corporation, Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 ...

(i.e., 18,000 kg or about 40,000 lbs) was expected to fly. The project was cancelled in 2010.

References

Sources

Defense Industry Daily (Oct 21/05) - US Congressional Budget Office Gives OK to HULA Airships for Airlift
*
Defense Industry Daily (July 6/05) - USAF Looking at Near-Space Blimps
* {{cite news , title=USA seeks heavylift cargo carrier , url=https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/usa-seeks-heavylift-cargo-carrier-177425/ , accessdate=25 October 2018 , work=Flight International , date=February 10, 2004 , language=English

External links

aeroscraft.com
Airships of the United States DARPA United States cargo aircraft

See also

References

Sources

External links