Lockheed Martin set to build unmanned prototype high-altitude airship

AKRON, Ohio, 9 Dec. 2005. Aircraft designers at the Lockheed Martin Maritime Systems & Sensors division in Akron, Ohio, are getting ready to build an unmanned lighter-than-air ship to demonstrate the technical feasibility of the High Altitude Airship.

Lockheed Martin won a $149,220,102 contract Dec. 8 from the U.S. Missile Defense Agency in Arlington, Va., to develop an unmanned and untethered prototype airship able to operate on station for one continuous month at a nominal cruise altitude.

This prototype vehicle will be able to carry a minimum payload capacity of 500 pounds with three kilowatts of power. The contract number is HQ0006-06-C-0001. Work will be in Akron, Ohio, and should be finished in late 2010.