1.0 Executive Summary
April, 2000
UPship Corporation was formed to put into production and operate an improved design of helium airship for advertising, passenger, and transport use. Our improvements will give us the advantage over our competitors in lower cost of operation and greater utility and comfort which we believe will allow us to capture a good portion of a growing international market. We are located in southeast Alabama, where we have a site for our initial design, construction, and testing phases. Our business plan details the processes, labor, and costs necessary to achieve our goals.
For those unfamiliar with airships, a good site on the internet, with links to many other sites, is: Http://spot.colorado.edu/~dziadeck/airship.html Much more information and further analysis is included in the full business plan.
Jesse Blenn, President
UPship Corporation
5198 Highway 84
Elba, AL 36323
Tel 334- 897-6132
FAX 334-897-3434
E-mail: airship@alaweb.com
1.1 The Market
According to Insider’s Report, worldwide expenditures for advertising rose from $275.5 billion in 1990 to a projected $434.4 billion in 1998. As clients look for new ways to expose their products, they have helped in the resurgence of a nearly abandoned technology: the helium airship, also known as blimp, dirigible, and “Zeppelin” in its various forms.
From a low of one Goodyear blimp flying in the 1960’s the number of similar non rigid airships carrying their sponsor’s name overhead has grown steadily, to over two dozen flying worldwide. Airship advertising business is now well over fifty million dollars per year. Operations have included Australia, Korea, China, Thailand, Japan, South Africa, Turkey, Israel, Norway, England, Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Mexico, and Canada, as well as all of continental Europe and the US. We have a list of near 50 clients, from Sea World to Renault to MasterCard to Novo Snack Bar. Lease periods have ranged from two weeks for special promotions to several continuous years. Leases are now over $200,000 per month for a 130 foot five seat airship which sells for $2 million plus. This, the A60+ Lightship by American Blimp Corporation, now has over 50% of the world market, and competes with larger, more expensive competitors.
This growth in commercial use has also led to a resurgence of interest in the use of airships for luxury passenger excursions, oversize cargo, and research and surveillance use. The Zeppelin company in Germany has their first airship flying in 60 years, and Dutch and German companies are to begin construction this year of giant passenger and cargo airships. Scheduled blimp rides over Las Vegas, Nevada, sell good at $179 to $199 per hour. The police of Puerto Rico have bought a blimp for their work for $4 million. These are all viable markets, WITH THE RIGHT AIRSHIP.
1.2 Mission
Despite the renewed interest, there have been very few real improvements in airship design since the 1930’s. They are safe and have a smooth ride but are noisy, need constant attention, and lack low speed control. Because of this last they require a large ground crew manning handling ropes for takeoff and landing. This is usually two to three per useful passenger, and is a major expense in airship operations, especially as most are not in a permanent location. Also, many millions of dollars have been spent to engineer “new ” airships which operate no better than their WWII counterparts. These costs are being passed on to clients. A great opportunity exists to overcome these high costs of development and operation and offer clients a cost-effective airship. UPship Corporation was formed in 1996 with that goal.
Over 14 years of study have gone into our design of an improved dirigible. (Dirigible is a multi-language term and means controllable, thus a good term for our airship.) This is based on proven technology and proposed improvements by competent designers of the past, combined with well-considered innovations to overcome control and handling limitations, while giving substantial improvements in maintenance, comfort, safety, and fuel efficiency. We have two US patents approved with more to follow. Our mission initially is to offer a better and more cost-effective airship to clients for advertising use, as this is an established market and can pay back the investment costs of development and commercial certification. But there is a tremendous potential for aerial tourism due the airship’s safe and enjoyable ride, as well as a viable transport system in areas lacking ground infrastructure. We will expand into other markets as they open up. We are ready to approach advertising agencies and corporate clients once availability dates can be fixed.
We propose a three-seat airship of 118 feet length initially as the most cost-effective entry level advertising ship. Our design is more versatile than any other for adaptation to other sizes and uses, including up to 100 passengers or more. As our business plan shows, our airships can be sold or operated for considerably less than our competitors. Type Certification by the Federal Aviation Administration is necessary to allow commercial operation. This is a major expense and is being studied very carefully. To build and FAA certify for commercial use our initial airship may cost near two million dollars, employing near twelve people over a period of near two years, plus some outside engineering and laboratory testing. We have very experienced engineers who will work with us to carry out this process as efficiently as possible. Additional ‘ships of the three seat size will cost near 1/8 that amount to produce.
Based on industry costs information, we can operate our airships for under $75,000 per month (average 140 hours flight time). A lease price of near $125,000 per month would be very competitive and allow a good return on investments. This is fully analyzed in the Operations section of the Upship business plan.
1.3 Objectives
1. Capture 20% of the existing airship advertising market within five years. At $12 million per year this will be near 10 of our initial airships operating at $100,000 per month.
2. Maintain 30% of expanding markets in advertising, tourism, transport, surveillance, and research, with different sizes of airships.
3. Maintain 25% profit margin on our commercial operations.
4. Maintain an excellent safety record and satisfied repeat customers, plus high employee morale and loyalty.
1.4 Our Team
Jesse Blenn, founder and President of UPship, is an accomplished mechanic, machinist, and electrician. His most recent project was the five year restoration of an abandoned hydroelectric powerplant for the sale of electricity. He knows what it takes to make machines work, and has the patience and drive to get the job done, and do it right. With an IQ of 133 (98th percentile) he has concentrated on the engineering aspects of airship design for the past 14 years, especially collecting and analyzing historical airship design information.
The UPship design is thus based on thousands of hours of study and careful consideration of all the facets involved in achieving an evolutionary yet revolutionary airship that can be built at a reasonable cost. He is fluent in Spanish, with experience in the metric system, patents, and drafting. Up to this point we have concentrated on the technical and location issues, but key management positions will be filled shortly. We have chosen as certification manager an FAA Designated Engineering Representative experienced in Type Certification with both companies who have completed the process in the United States. He will work with at least two DER’s in our area to carry out this process through the Atlanta Aircraft Certification Office. EJM Aerospace Services in nearby Crestview, Florida (60 miles) has full certification, engineering and composite component fabrication services available as necessary, with some experience in airship work.
Experienced aviation workers are available in our area due to the closeness of a major U.S. Army helicopter facility, plus a large airline maintenance facility. Alabama Aviation Technical College is located nearby in Ozark, Alabama and has helped us get a list of interested and available workers for our future needs.
1.5 Financial
We plan near twelve employees initially, with near two years before we can commence commercial operations. This assumes investor capital of near $2,000,000 for labor, facilities, testing, materials, and certification. At present stock price this would be near 60,000 shares of stock, giving the investors near 81% ownership of stock, with near 13.5% to Jesse Blenn and near 5.5% to eleven existing shareholders. Other financing options may be available, including customer participation. There is a possibility of grants and/or low interest loans, which we will be actively pursuing. This has already resulted in the likely availability of a new hangar constructed for us at the Enterprise airport, at a minimal lease cost.
Including necessary office and management personnel, we estimate near 4 man years total for each additional ship, giving a cost of near $250,000 each. To reach our goal we plan to construct four additional airships each year, with near sixteen employees. Of these half are assumed operated by us through an operating division to be set up, and half sold to existing or new outside operators at $500,000. At 2/3 of the possible $50,000 monthly profit per airship yearly profit would be $400,000 per airship operated. Additional passenger revenue not included here could easily add 50% to the operating income. Operations are here entered as profit only. It has taken the Lightship near 7 years to create and capture the majority of the world market. Based on this, we can foresee the following dates, expenses, income (in thousands of dollars $) and airships Built, Operated, and Sold (B/O/S):
Production Operations
Period Expense Subtotal Income Subtotal Sold Balance B/O/S
7/01-12/01 500 500 0 0 0 -500 0
1/02-6/02 500 1000 0 0 0 -1000 0
7/02-12/02 500 1500 0 0 0 -1500 0
1/03-6/03 500 2000 0 0 0 -2000 1/0/0
7/03-12/03 500 2500 200 200 500 -1800 3/1/1
1/04-6/04 500 3000 400 600 1000 -1400 5/2/2
7/04-12/04 500 3500 600 1200 1500 – 800 7/3/3
1/05-6/05 500 4000 800 2000 2000 +000 9/4/4
7/05-12/05 500 4500 1000 3000 2500 +1000 11/5/5
1/06-6/06 500 5000 1200 4200 3000 +2200 13/6/6
7/06-12/06 500 5500 1400 5600 3500 +3600 15/7/7
1/07-6/07 500 6000 1600 7200 4000 +5200 17/8/8
7/07-12/07 500 6500 1800 9000 4500 +7000 19/9/9
1/07-6/07 500 7000 2000 11000 5000 +9000 21/10/10
2.0 Company Summary
2.1 Company history
UPship began in Jackson, Georgia in 1987 as The UPship Project. There was in interest by the Portico company, a major manufacturer of mahogany doors in Costa Rica, to use airships in rain forest logging and management. A study of airship design and the improvements necessary to make such a use possible was begun by Jesse Blenn. Due to management changes at Portico no funding was forthcoming from Costa Rica, but design work continued on a one place prototype design, with funding help from Joe Josey and planned construction in an available aircraft hangar. This was postponed when from 1992 to 1997 Jesse relocated to work on a hydroelectric project in Alabama, which precluded any construction work. However considerable further technical investigation and design work kept the idea very much alive. The basic UPship dirigible airship design has evolved and improved over these years. UPship Corporation was started in 1996, with the purpose of final development, construction, and operation of these improved helium dirigible airships.
2.2 Company Ownership
We incorporated UPship, Inc. as a privately held Alabama “S” corporation on May 8, 1996. For tax purposes, this classification allows the expected losses up to our break even point to be reported on our shareholders’ personal income tax. When appropriate this status will be changed to that of a “C” corporation.
Present shareholders include Jesse Blenn, Joe Josey, Carmen Blenn, and 9 minor shareholders. Together they now own 1532 shares of the presently authorized 25,000 shares. Since 1993 Jesse Blenn has funded most necessary expenses, with minor shareholders making possible patent applications and some necessary software, etc. A shareholders agreement recorded on Sept 12, 1997 sets various conditions for sale of stock in UPship, Inc., including a stock sale price increase of 7% per quarter ( 31% annual ) and a limited further distribution of stock to the three founding shareholders. Under this agreement those providing the necessary venture capital for the full construction and certification process will receive near eighty percent equity, depending on the amount and date of investment.
2.3 Startup Summary
Our start-up costs come to $15,000. Though we have been in business legally for over three years, these allow us to do further necessary legal work and set up an office with the proper dedicated equipment to begin our marketing effort. The $3300 estimate for consulting is based on an experienced Designated Engineering Representative’s quote on the first step in the FAA Type Certification process. We include $2,000 as additional initial certification expense for travel and additional consultation to proceed forward with this initially. Five hundred is initially budgeted for our internet site upship.com, where we will have a description of our airships, general information about airships, and links to other sites. R & D may include purchase of material samples, technical reports, etc. The start-up process will allow a design freeze based on input from Certification and Marketing as a necessary step before final drawings, mock ups, and tooling are begun.
Start-up Plan
Start-up Expenses
Legal (leasing and permits) $1,000
Stationery etc. $200
Brochures $500
Consultant (pre-certification) $3,300
Certification travel, etc $2,000
Website setup $500
Insurance $1,000
Research and development $1,000
Other $1,500
Total Start-up Expense $11,000
Start-up Assets Needed
Cash Requirements $1,000
Other Short-term Assets $3,000
Total Short-term Assets $4,000
Long-term Assets $0
Total Assets $4,000
Total Start-up Requirements: $15,000
Left to finance: $0
Start-up Funding Plan
Investment
Venture capital investors $15,000
Others $0
Other $0
Total investment $15,000
Short-term Liabilities
Unpaid Expenses $0
Short-term Loans $0
Interest-free Short-term
Loans
$0
Subtotal Short-term
Liabilities
$0
Long-term Liabilities $0
Total Liabilities $0
Loss at Start-up ($11,000)
Total Capital $4,000
Total Capital and Liabilities $4,000
Check-line $0
2.4 Company Locations and Facilities
Suitable sites for construction and initial operations of our first airships have been found at the nearby Enterprise and Andalusia, Alabama airports. The construction of larger airships will likely involve a dedicated airfield with a larger hangar and moderate infrastructure. Operation is from a large level area – a runway is not necessary. Reasonably priced sites for this are readily available. Enterprise can provide a 700 foot diameter grass takeoff and landing area near the airport administration building, plus room for hangar construction. A hangar size of near 80 feet wide by 160 feet long by 40 feet high would allow work on or storage of two of our three seat airships. The extra length will allow additional floors of office and shop space opposite the main door, for a total of near 18,000 square feet. The Andalusia site would be more appropriate for a larger 8-seat version – the best initial size for combined tourism and advertising. A 1000 foot diameter operating area plus plenty of room for hangar, offices, etc. are available. We would anticipate a 100 by 200 foot hangar at this location, with near 25,000 square feet. An economical style hangar can be built for $10 to $20 per square foot, thus $180-360,000 for the 80 x 160 foot or $250-500,000 for the 100 x 200 foot hangar.
The airport administrations are very receptive to the idea and can likely cooperate with site preparation and hangar construction, which can be leased to us at cost. Hangar style may be subject to local approval. Further confidential talks will be underway until a size freeze can be made and a public announcement is appropriate. It is anticipated that the inner portion of the hangar will be built first for near 1/2 the total cost. This wil include all office, engineering, and a large climate controlled fabrication area. Facilities would include light machine shop and metal fabrication equiptment, with jigs built for most major components. A full- length form for envelope fabric cutting and assembly would be included once the full hangar length is completed. As envelope construction and then final assembly are the last steps, the majority of the work can actually be done before hangar completion is necessary. Office and small component fabrication could also be in separate facilities. If a one seat ultralight version is built first, this could be built and operated from the Blenn property near Elba , where a 400 foot diameter area with good approach can be provided.
3.0 Products
UPship provides services using airships as aerial platforms for our customer’s end use. Our first focus will be on the unique advertising possible with a billboard in the sky, especially in conjunction with public events. Second, and normally in conjunction with advertising is sightseeing tours of 1/2 to 1 hour duration. Besides these known and immediate uses, we expect to find a market for use of our airships for scientific research, surveillance, and longer tourist flights. There is a possible very large market in commercial transport of passengers and cargo into less-developed or ecologically sensitive areas lacking large airports. We will build and also operate our airships, which have unique capabilities making them especially attractive for all these markets.
3.1 The UPship Airships
While detail features of our airships are still confidential (as are drawings of the latest version, except to investors), we will summarize our design approach and some main features, all based on careful consideration of the strengths and weaknesses of past and present airships. We have considered one, two, three, eight, sixteen, and fifty passenger variations, all of which have near twice the aerodynamic efficiency of present airships and can be sold AND operated for near half the cost still with a very good profit. This lower cost of operation- due mostly to reduced ground crew plus ease of maintenance- with greater utility at the same time, will be the key to the success of our company.
Our design stresses aerodynamic and structural efficiency, and includes features not seen or proposed since the 1930’s. The UPship design gives a better distribution of loads, lower internal pressures, better maintenance access, multiple helium compartments, “hard points” for ground handling, and larger sizes possible than with the present designs. Compared to other airships available which use near three crew per useful passenger, the UPship design will allow a greatly reduced crew. These will be only three for advertising or four for passenger operations of the 001, although when necessary landing and takeoff can be accomplished by the pilot alone. The improved control will greatly enhance utility, making controlled hover and near obstacle operations safe. The basic design is scalable to larger sizes than present types, where it would have an additional internal “semi rigid” framing and internal construction which open up the lower section for passenger or cargo use and allows nearly all the advantages of true rigid construction with less cost and complexity.
DESIGN FEATURES: Shape of minimum resistance, with propulsion engines in inverted “V” tail fins and nose mounted thruster for control at all speeds. Designed for ease of maintenance, with reduced dependence on internal pressure. Greatly improved control, multiple helium cells, and a smoother ride increases usefulness and safety while eliminating majority of ground crew.
FLYING CONTROLS: Joyce stick operated pitch and yaw control by ruddervators in propeller slipstream, with aerodynamic assist; automatic pitch trim; foot pedals control bow thruster for enhanced and low speed control (up, down, right, left, and reverse) and heavy lifting.
STRUCTURE: Aluminum and steel tubing hard structures; some carbon composites as appropriate: envelope of proprietary rip-stop construction, with internal divisions and four helium cells. Tail fins deflect under excessive ground or air loads (US Patent).
POWER PLANT: Three 24 HP Konig two-stroke radial piston engines with electric start. Two operate in tail fin openings, one operates bow thruster. Twin alternators for night illumination system and electric cabin heat. Fuel capacity 75 liters (20 gals).
ACCOMODATIONS: Pilot and two passengers, seated inline. Electric cabin heat. Quiet and vibration free due to distance from engines. Cabin has side door and camera/winching hatch; rear seat reclines; ample space for rest, equipment, or rescue operations.
DIMENSIONS: Length 36 meters (118.1 ft), diameter 7.2 m. (23.6 ft), height 8.7 m (28.5 ft) width @ tails 10 m (32.8 ft).
VOLUMES: Envelope 894 cubic meters (31,370 cubic feet), initial helium fill 785 cubic meters (27,720 cubic feet).
WEIGHTS: Total lift near 785 kg (1730 lbs), empty weight near 470 kg (1037 lbs) , useful lift near 315 kg (695 lbs) , thruster lift 50 kg (110 lbs).
PERFORMANCE: Max speed 97 kph (60 mph), cruise at 50% 77 kph (48 mph), cruise at 25% 62 kph (38 mph).
ENDURANCE: At 50% 5 hours, at 25% 10 hours (20% fuel reserve).
RANGE: At 50% 386 km (240 miles), at 25% 618 km (380 miles).
COSTS: Set up operations, build and FAA Type Certify first ship: near $2,000,000. Cost of production near $250,000. Selling price near $500,000.
Commercial total operating cost under $300 per hour/ $2-3000 per day/ $50- 75,000 per month. Expected lease (U.S.) $100-125,000 per month.
OTHER SIZE AIRSHIPS: Airships can be built up to extremely large sizes with high efficiency. We have considered specifications and details of a single seat ultralight airship of 2/3 linear scale of the described three-seat (24 meters length, 265 cubic meters). This can be a very economical proof of concept for our design with a cost of $50-75,000, easily saved on reduced design and testing time of the larger ships. Also we have considered an eight-seat version as the minimum size especially suited for aerial tourism, a possible enormous market. At 48 meters length this would be 1 1/3 scale of the three seat. Basic specifications would be:
Length 48 meters; Diameter: 9.6 meters; Volume 2120 cubic meters.
Helium fill near 1865 cubic meters giving near 1865 kg gross lift and near 840 kg useful lift.
Cost to build and certify (as initial airship) near $3 million.
Cost of later production: well under $1 million.
A potential very large market exists for an effective cargo airship, likely initially in the 50 to 100 ton load size range. For this certain features of the UPship design are especially appropriate, with adaptations due to sizing and operations. Sizes under study would be near 5 and 6 times scale of the 001 and be of 590 or 708 feet (180/216 meter) length. This is well within the practical size range of the UPship design features.
The greatest potential exists in developing countries where the costs, difficulties, and time delays of building and maintaining roads and airports makes the development of rural or isolated areas very slow, and often nonexistent. This size of airship uses a fraction of the fuel per ton/mile of cargo airplanes, can be built for a fraction of the unit cost, and can operate from sites with minimal facilities – a grass clearing or small natural or man-made lake. The economic, ecological, and social benefits make this a VERY attractive market. Again, with the UPship design, we have THE RIGHT AIRSHIP.
3.2 Airship Operations
Initially, our operations will compete with existing operators for predominantly advertising use. The normal flight time often quoted for this use in 140 hours per month, though up to 240 hours have been flown. Airships are normally operated under what is known as a “wet lease” including all necessary experienced personnel and support equipment, with no flight crew provided by the customer. Direct competition with existing operators such as The Lightship Group will necessitate a portable operation with normally not over a few weeks in any one location. Scheduling is usually weeks in advance to include major public events, sometimes in more than one country. Common procedure often includes giving VIP rides and publicity flights for reporters, etc. in lieu of paying passengers, at the client’s option.
However, our operations will likely be different due to our lower cost of operation. This means that the same customer could afford to use our airships for a longer period, or in smaller cities cost-effectively. Also, in the same city there may well be more than one customer who can afford the use of our ship. Both these facts would tend toward longer periods in any one location. This would allow more opportunities to take paying passengers. Our quiet cabin and greater stability will especially impress passengers. Passenger use can defray a large percentage of total costs and thus is very attractive in areas of high tourism or scenic beauty – natural or man-made.
Many areas exist which could support the use of a permanently stationed airship, with possible occasional nearby outside trips for special events. This combined with the small number of ground crew could make possible the use of a permanent local crew and avoid the considerable complexity and expense of road costs. We also anticipate fewer crew once automated handling of the rear of the airship is proven and FAA approved, with little or no increase in crew size for larger ships.
Other airships are not adequately controlled in pitch and roll movements when moored and require a constant watch to adjust weights and monitor pressure. Using systems similar to ours however, the rigid airship Los Angeles was left unattended for weeks. Under normal conditions where airport security personnel are nearby and access restricted we will require no night watch. Any abnormal condition of pressure or attitude will be reported by automatic dialed telephone alarm to the appropriate on-call personnel.
Our goal is especially the reduction of operating costs, and this is largely through reduced crew. The pilot will be in full control of the attachment and release of the airship nose mooring point. Due to our improved design features, pilot fatigue will be less of a problem. Still, in compliance with regulations, for any amount over 100 hours per month we must assume the required availability of two pilots for tradeoff and to allow off duty time. We will initially have an active ground crew of three, plus two in reserve for long days, errands, sickness, and vacation. These five will include a crew chief and mechanic.
Operating Costs:
We can anticipate the following costs, based on comparisons with published figures for the ten-seat Skyship 600 and six-seat AT-10. This assumes an availability of 70% of each average 50 hour flight week, giving a flight time of 140 hours per month and 1600 hours per year including time off for maintenance and transit. Overhead includes benefits and travel expenses.
PERSONNEL
Crew
Two pilots @ $60,000 plus overhead of 60% $192,000
One crew chief @ $40,000 plus o/h $84,000
One mechanic @ $40,000 plus o/h $84,000
Three ground crew @ $30,000 plus o/h $144,000
________
Subtotal $504,000
Administration
One coordinator, public relations
@ $30,000 plus o/h of 30% $39,000
________
PERSONNEL TOTAL $543,000
OTHER
Insurance
Hull and 3rd party @ 10% $50,000
Depreciation
To residual value of 20% in 5 years = 16% $80,000
Maintenance
Fuel, spares, helium @ $60 per flight hour $96,000
Airport Facilities
Rental and fees $75,000
Miscellaneous
Uniforms, transport, utilities, supplies $60,000
________
OTHER SUBTOTAL $361,000
plus PERSONNEL above +543,000
________
TOTAL YEARLY EXPENDITURE $904,000
PER 140-HOUR MONTH $75,333
This compares to over $200,000 per month for Airship Technologies new six-seat AT-10, and near that figure for the popular American Blimp Corporation A- 60+ operated by The Lightship Group. Eight years ago this same A-60+ was being offered for $105,000 per month. This obviously included a profit, which would imply that the lease costs now offered include a larger profit. Those of the AT-10 used as a basis for the above are based on higher European costs. Some of these expenses, especially crew overhead, could be considerably reduced when operating from a fixed base, or using local crew in developing countries.
3.3 Competitive Comparison
Today, airships are available for lease from a few companies at a premium price. In fact there are Airships Industries Skyships which operate at $300,000 per month in storage awaiting customers who can pay their high cost of operation, while the smaller Lightship’s business is booming at 2/3 or more that price. Our European agent, Balloon Promotion s.a.s., said of the Lightship they brought to Italy:
“…very high charter rates ($220,000 per month) that reduce the potential customers to few companies in Europe. We think that a reduction of approximately one-third would allow a much bigger potential market.”
This shows the importance of pricing, and it will be a major selling point for our airships, especially the lower cost of operation due to reduced crew. But we will also offer greater passenger comfort, a novel nighttime illumination system, and improved performance – controlled hover, search and rescue and water landing capability, and quick and safe mooring. These are improvements others only talk and dream about. For the first time, true utility will be combined with the novelty that is airships.
3.4 Sales Literature and Website
We receive inquiries about our airships nearly on a weekly basis, based on a small amount of information on the internet. Interest is truly worldwide, including recently Norway, Brazil, Philippines, Argentina, Colombia, Peru, England, St. Helena, Indonesia, Italy, and Los Angeles County, California. It is of course hard to determine which are serious inquiries. As yet we have no sales literature and are sending only a list of specifications similar to that in this business plan.
Included in startup expenses would be an appropriate four-color general information brochure to give a more professional impression, plus brochures specifically targeting the advertising market. We have reserved the appropriate website name “upship.com”, and startup will include the development and posting of pertinent general and specific information there, plus an effort to establish links in appropriate fields to direct customers to us. Based on the past, we can anticipate a very good response from this medium of publicity, and use of the internet is by far the best and easiest means of promotion for such a worldwide and diverse market as we are targeting.
3.5 Sourcing
During thirteen years of development we have collected much and established sources of information on airship design. We will not need to hire specific airship consultants (very few and at up to $1000 per day). The Type Certification process will off and on require a team of aircraft engineers with expertise in different areas of certification, not specific to airships, such as powerplant, structure, lightning protection, electrical system, etc. These are available at $45 to $90 on a per- hour basis. As an aircraft manufacturer, our sources will mostly be established aircraft material and component companies familiar with the processes and documentation required by the FAA. Envelope materials will come mostly from DuPont. Engines will be the German Konig (three-seat) and Zoche Diesel (larger ships) as these best fit our needs. Due to the low volume production initially, we will use certified off-the shelf components where possible (seats, fuel tanks, instruments, etc.) and do not expect any custom castings, custom onboard computers, or complex machining.
US government figures for the aircraft industry show a value added …… (give conclusions from analysis of applicable government data to follow as an appendix).
3.6 Technology
Many technological advances have been made in recent years which can reduce weight and increase performance of airships. These are mostly in materials, avionics, and powerplant areas, and in our case aerodynamics and control systems. We of course will use CAD drafting, finite element structural analysis and other modern design tools. Computer aided manufacturing is a definite future possibility. And, especially for our worldwide market, computer aided marketing via the internet is a must.
There are in fact many modern technologies which could be used to advantage on larger airships. However, high technology costs money and development and certification time. Due to our anticipated initial low volume production, we must approach such innovation from the bottom line: will it pay in lower cost, time saved, safer or better operation? Our major focus is not on complex technology, but on practical innovative means to overcome the admitted problems of airships (most of these are in control and mooring).
The British Skyships were called a “leap in technology”. However, this resulted in little real improvement in performance, and higher costs. Their success was moderate. The Lightship has been called “a Mack Truck of a blimp”: rugged, no frills (neither have cabin heat!), off-the-shelf components where possible. This contributes to their low cost (high profit) and simpler operation and maintenance. Likewise we will use simple systems (including electric heat) and standard aircraft components and materials where possible. Most metal structure will be riveted aluminum tubing; suspensions will be rubber bungee cord, etc. All components, mooring equipment, and even fabrication jigs will be designed for easy shipment in standardized containers (39′ 6″ long, 90″ wide, 90″ high). We use the metric system except for standard fasteners, due to its simplicity and international acceptance. (One cubic meter of helium lifts 1 kg, 1 mm of water column pressure is 1 kg per square meter- very simple)
Airship design was a well-developed technology up to the 1930’s – more advanced than many, including today’s airship “experts”, realize. Old patents have been especially useful, giving a glimpse into the minds of great designers of the past, who had many promising ideas not fully utilized. We have US Patent number 6,019,312 for our tail fin mounting system, and expect others. Patents allow the holder to prevent others from making, using, or selling an invention for 20 years (US) and are very appropriate for certain features we will be using which can justify the cost (over $1000 minimum) and time (considerable) involved.
Historically, the two major negative factors in airship development were an underestimation of the power of wind gusts (and thus necessary airship strength) and the high price/ lack of availability of helium as lifting gas, which made flammable hydrogen the norm. Materials were also heavier and with a shorter useful life than today. These negative factors have been overcome. Today the FAA Type Certification process helps assure safety and accountability, while allowing considerable freedom in how an airship is actually constructed. Compared to jet travel, today’s airships are inherently “medium tech”, low-altitude, low-impact, low-speed, and safe. These are all unique characteristics that we can market.
3.7 FAA Certification
FAA Type Certification is the process whereby a specific aircraft design is approved , with the major emphasis on safety. It is the first and major step toward later production of an aircraft for sale or commercial use. The FAA states: “Aircraft certification regulations are intended to promote the airworthiness of aircraft by requiring that every aircraft is produced in conformance with an approved type design and is in safe operating condition. Regulations seek to achieve this goal through a combination of requirements for design, analysis, test, inspection, maintenance, and operations. As much as possible, regulations do not constrain designers a priori by specifying details such as material properties or the design of individual structures. Instead, designers are given a free hand to incorporate new materials, structural concepts, etc., as long as they accept the responsibility for showing that systems with innovative design features meet the FAA’s stringent reliability requirements.”