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TV takes to . . . THE HOLDEN AIRSHIP coming to a sky near you! L ook! Up in the sky! It’s a bird . . . it’s a plane . . . it’s a, well, what is it? Airships are not exactly new in Australian skies. We recall several over the past couple of decades or so. But they still command a lot of attention whenever they are in view. Perhaps it’s because they are in view for such a long time, given their sedate progress through the heavens. Holden’s new A-170 Lightship is something else again. It has the “wow” factor! It’s not just a large airship – though it is certainly that at 54.3m long, 14m wide and almost 17m tall – that’s bigger than a Boeing 767. The first time you see it, especially from a distance and even more especially at night, you look – and look again. Just what is it? My first time was from perhaps 20km or more away and all I could make out, in the night sky, was this big, red, pulsating “thing”. It was, most definitely, an Unidentified Flying Object. Was it finally those long-expected Martians? 8  Silicon Chip “No one would have believed in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched...” so starts the HG Wells classic, “War of the Worlds.” Well, in a way, we are – being watched, that is: the Holden Lightship is certainly watching as well as being watched. But I digress. As what I now know as the Holden Lightship got closer that night, the massive 21.3 x 9.1m “TV” screen attached to one side started to come into focus. Wow! What a picture! In fact it’s so big that up too close (say a hundred metres or so) the image becomes too pixellated to make out. Full motion video Until now airships and blimps have only been able to screen animation or basic graphic displays. You’ve probably seen them in coverage of major sporting events in the by Ross Tester USA (eg, the Goodyear Blimp or the Whitman Airship). Their video screens were capable of showing rudimentary computer-generated graphics. But the Holden Airship is unique: it’s the first and only aircraft in the world to use technology that allows full-motion video to be shown on its screen. And Australians are the first audience in the world see it. Not even Holden’s parent company in the USA, GM, can claim a lightship like this (although that will probably change given the amazing popularity and acceptance of the down-under subsidiary’s baby!) It can, in fact, show a computer graphic, a recorded video, live video from its on-board cameras (very handy at a major event!). It can even show programming picked up “off air” from its own TV receivers. The screen The video screen, on the port (left) side of the envelope and measuring 914 inches (diagonal) in the old siliconchip.com.au In this daytime photo you can clearly see the port (left) and starboard nose ropes which the ground crew must secure when the Lightship comes in to “land”. money, contains a massive 396,600 ultrabright LEDs in R-G-B clusters. This screen has been in development since 1998 and the Holden Lightship was only certified to fly earlier this year. The company which developed the screen has considerable experience in the field, with several large screeens around the world including the one in Times Square, New York. But their biggest challenge – and the difference between those types of screens and one which can fly on any aircraft, has been keeping the weight down to an acceptable level. Even so, it weighs in at around 450kg. The precise construction of the screen is, according to GM, “a closely guarded secret”, as is the proprietary software developed to drive it. However, we do know that the screen is specifically designed to be viewed from ground level. The screen developers believe they are about three years ahead of the opposition. They’re already assembling a second Lightship, hoping to have it ready to fly early in the new year. There is a difference between the night and day screens – during the night, it’s full colour but by day, the choices are only red on a black background. Development is proceeding on a full colour system for daylight viewing, which is hoped will be ready about the middle of next year. So at the moment, for example, in daylight it can “only” display a Holden logo or animation while flying over a city – or an event! And that’s why certain parties have been getting at least a little miffed by the Holden Lightship flying over masiliconchip.com.au jor sporting events. You simply can’t help look up and see those Holden logos or adverts, when other (opposition) companies have paid big money for exclusivity at a sporting ground. It’s called ambush marketing and so far, at least in the Holden Airship case, no-one has found a satisfactory way to counter it because air space is free! Incidentally, we’ve seen claims that the screen on the Holden Lightship is the largest video screen in the world. But we imagine Mitsubishi with their 109 x 12m Diamond Vision screen at Hong Kong racecourse might just dispute that a little (at least according to the folks from Guinness!). It is the largest flying video screen though. . . The airship There have also been all sorts of rumours around, especially on the ’net, about the Holden Lightship: one that keeps popping up by those “in the know” is “it’s just the Whitman’s Airship repainted”. It’s not. Funny, but the Whitman’s Airship is a completely different model (the smaller A-60+) and has never had a full motion video screen attached (it’s not big enough). The Holden Lightship is brand new, American Blimp model A-170, built and modified specifically for the purpose. What might be confusing the issue is the Holden Lightship’s US registration – N156LG. As it was built in the US, it flies under the US (FAA) aircraft register. Designed originally for advertising and thus kept simple for reliability, A170s have almost 200,000 flight hours. Many of these hours have been flown with various types of broadcast cameras and data downlinks, covering events for media or security. The camera mounting is made to handle a gyro-stabilised camera for the rock-solid images we are used to seeing on TV. This type of airship has also been adapted as a communications and sensor platform for a multitude of other missions. T he A-170 has a maximum speed of 84km/h and a cruising speed of 74km/h – provided by twin 180 BHP Lycoming IO-360-B1G6 motors with constant-speed, variable-pitch, reversible propellers. At cruising speed, it uses around 91 litres of Avgas per hour, giving it about 7.5 hours or about 400km, of endurance. The aircraft can climb at 425m/minute and descend at 485m/ minute. 200A alternators attached to each engine give the ship its electrical The Holden Lightship moored at its base at Camden Airport, southwest of Sydney. A crew of 19 – 14 of them on the ground – is required to handle the aircraft. (Photo by Peter Murphy) December 2006  9 power. These power everything on board except the two internal 1kW floodlights which give the Holden Lightship its red glow at night – a small APU (auxiliary power unit) is attached to the rear of the gondola for these. While the on-board crew is limited to five (pilot plus four others) it takes 19 overall crew to handle the aircraft. The envelope The Holden Lightship is a dirigible or blimp – that is, there is no metal frame inside the outer skin to keep it rigid. Only the pressure of the gas inside the UV-protected skin keeps its shape. Four fins with rudder and control surfaces are attached at the back, while at the front, a nose-dish is used to moor the airship when on the ground. It was built by ILC Dover in the US, the same company which manufactures space suits for NASA. Fabrication was in clean-room conditions, to eliminate the possibility of dust contamination, especially in the seams. This could allow helium to escape, lowering the lift of the aircaft. The ballonet (the gas container inside the outer skin) contains approximately five million litres of helium, giving a maximum lift of a little over 5.5 tonnes. Remember that this has to lift everything: the envelope, the gondola, the motors, those on board with their equipment and of course, that near half-tonne of video screen. From a fully-collapsed package about the size of a car, the envelope takes about eight hours to fill. While it is coloured a translucent red, the Holden logos are white. But more than that, they are perforated with small (12mm) holes so that the light inside the envelope can shine through, making them appear brighter than what they otherwise would be. This photo, in flight over Sydney Harbour, shows one of the two 180 BHP Lycoming motors attached to the rear of the gondola. They chew through 91 litres of Avgas each hour! (Photo by Peter Murphy). station, seating for one passenger and can be configured to accommodate various equipment required for special missions. The instruments and layout are typical for a twin engine IFR-approved aircraft, with added instruments for airship pressure management. Access to the ballonet and the ballonet view-window are located on the Flight Deck. 2. Personnel/Passenger Compartment (cabin), accessible through a main entry door located aft of the Flight Deck on the port side of the gondola. A bench seat, providing seating for three, is located against the aft bulkhead. An emergency exit is located directly aft of the co-pilot/ pax seat on the starboard side of the gondola. 3. Electrical Bay, which contains the equipment to monitor, regulate and distribute the electrical power. 4. Equipment Compartment – contains the air plenum chamber and the 673 litre fuel tank, which feeds the two power plants mounted on outriggers at the aft end of the gondola. 5. The Ballast Compartment, located beneath the rear bench seat located in the personnel compartment. The Ballast Compartment is accessible from four outer crew access doors located on the port and starboard side of the gondola and forward of the outriggers. The rear bench seat can be raised for access from within the personnel compartment. In addition to ballast, this compartment also houses the ship’s batteries and electrical power distribution system. SC The gondola There’s not a great deal of cabin space inside the 8m x 3.3m x 6.2m gondola, which hangs from the envelope via 16 external cables. It’s made from welded steel tubing and covered with a combination of aluminium and fabric. The cabin is just 5.5m x 2m x 1.5m. The gondola is divided into five main compartments: 1. Flight Deck, which houses the avionics panel, flight controls, pilot 10  Silicon Chip Passenger’s-eye view of the “flight deck” of the Holden Lightship. The gondola has a large amount of glass, giving breathtaking views of the scenery as it passes below. (Photo by Peter Murphy) siliconchip.com.au