Professor Suggests Airships for Northern Delivery

Professor Suggests Airships for Northern Delivery

Wednesday, January 12, 2011 at 15:23

A university professor in Manitoba believes airships should be used to transport groceries and supplies to northern regions without permanent road access.

Barry Prentice has already pitched the idea to his home province.

He says the ships, which look like giant blimps, are slowly being used more and more in the world as a way to get large volumes of equipment to remote destinations.

He says the airships don’t need long runways and can even land on gravel.

Currently, Prentice says the ships can carry 10 to 20 tonnes of stuff, but he says companies are preparing to raise that limit to 150 or 200 tonnes.

He adds trusses for houses, fuel containers, light trucks and furniture can also be loaded on.

Prentice he believes the airships will be available for use within 3 to 5 years.