British Hybrid Airship Can Now Fly Again
Crowdfunding and government grants ensure that the Airlander 10 will be demonstrated to potential customers.
The massive Royal Airship Works sheds at Cardington, UK, where HAV is based, date back to the early days of lighter-than-air flight. HAV’s Airlander is stored in the structure to the left, which once housed the R101.
The massive Royal Airship Works sheds at Cardington, UK, where HAV is based, date back to the early days of lighter-than-air flight. HAV’s Airlander is stored in the structure to the left, which once housed the R101.

A return to flight in the UK for a huge hybrid airship now seems assured, following a fundraising exercise by its maker. Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV) is receiving more than $3 million from nearly 900 investors via CrowdCube, a crowdfunding website. The company had hoped to fly the Airlander 10 this year, but now says that won’t happen until the end of the first quarter of next year. The 300-foot long airship flew just once in the U.S. in 2012 as the long endurance multipurpose vehicle (LEMV), a project sponsored by the U.S. Army and subsequently cancelled after nearly $300 million had been spent.