Errymath: Airlander 10

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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span id="ext-gen122" style="font-size: 1.2em;">Airlander 10</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">The world's
 largest aircraft branded 'the flying bum' has taken to the skies in a 
successful maiden voyage - the first since a revamp in Britain.</span></div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<span id="ext-gen122" style="font-size: 1.2em;">The
 302ft-long Airlander 10 - part plane, part helicopter, part airship - 
loomed overhead at Cardington airfield in Bedfordshire as the sun 
started to set on this evening.</span></div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Photographers
 and plane spotters baked in the sun as they waited to see the aircraft,
 whose bulbous exterior has earned it the less-than-glamorous nickname 
'the flying bum', take off.</span></div>
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The world's largest aircraft has taken to the skies in a successful maiden voyage - the first since a revamp in Britain</div>
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<img alt="The aircraft (pictured) has been nicknamed 'the flying bum' by enthusiasts because of its unusual shape " class="blkBorder img-share" height="641" id="i-58d396b5356cb7c7" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/08/18/00/375701D600000578-3745794-image-a-47_1471477340921.jpg" width="962" /><div class="share-pictures-overlay" id="share-pictures-2">
  
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The aircraft (pictured) has been nicknamed 'the flying bum' by enthusiasts because of its unusual shape </div>
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<img alt=" Photographers and plane spotters baked in the sun as they waited to see the aircraft, whose bulbous exterior has earned it the less-than-glamorous nickname 'the flying bum', take off" class="blkBorder img-share" height="634" id="i-e8dc274e4ae5f1c2" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/08/17/20/37568F6700000578-3745794-image-a-27_1471463771372.jpg" width="962" /><div class="share-pictures-overlay" id="share-pictures-3">
  
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 Photographers and plane spotters 
baked in the sun as they waited to see the aircraft, whose bulbous 
exterior has earned it the less-than-glamorous nickname 'the flying 
bum', take off</div>
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<img alt=" One lone man sets up a deckchair earlier in the day to secure a good spot for the maiden voyage of the Airlander (pictured)" class="blkBorder img-share" height="669" id="i-510f50877a17c6da" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/08/17/20/3754BE5600000578-3745794-image-a-30_1471463949550.jpg" width="962" /><div class="share-pictures-overlay" id="share-pictures-4">
  
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 One lone man sets up a deckchair earlier in the day to secure a good spot for the maiden voyage of the Airlander (pictured)</div>
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<img alt="The £25million Airlander 10, the largest aircraft in the world, during its maiden flight at Cardington airfield in Bedfordshire" class="blkBorder img-share" height="540" id="i-b2788c9626c9e4ae" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/08/17/20/euQulucw13b2cb176c3ef16317d-3745794-The_Airlander_10_the_largest_aircraft_in_the_world_during_its_ma-a-26_1471463771352.jpg" width="962" /><div class="share-pictures-overlay" id="share-pictures-5">
  
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The £25million Airlander 10, the largest aircraft in the world, during its maiden flight at Cardington airfield in Bedfordshire</div>
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<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">The 
developers called the ship a 'great British innovation' after the 
flight, which was a modern milestone in airships, which was all but 
abandoned after the famous Hindenburg disaster in 1937.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Stephen
 McGlennan, chief executive of Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV), added: 'It's a
 combination of an aircraft that has parts of normal fixed-wing 
aircraft, it's got helicopter, it's got airship.'</span></div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">The Airlander is designed to use less fuel than a plane, but carry heavier loads than conventional airships.</span></div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font" id="ext-gen123">
<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">HAV say it can reach 16,000 feet, travel at up to 90 mph and stay aloft for up to two weeks.</span></div>
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<span id="ext-gen124" style="font-size: 1.2em;">The aircraft was initially developed for the U.S. military, which planned to use it for surveillance in Afghanistan. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">But
 the US blimp program was scrapped in 2013 and since then, HAV, a small 
British aviation firm that dreams of ushering in a new era for airships,
 has sought funding from government agencies and individual donors.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">The
 vast aircraft is based at Cardington, where the first British airships 
were built during and after World War I. That program was abandoned 
after a 1930 crash that killed almost 50 people, including Britain's air
 minister.</span></div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">That
 accident and others — including the fiery 1937 crash in New Jersey of 
the Hindenburg, which killed 35 — dashed the dream of the airship as a 
mode of transportation for decades.</span></div>
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<img alt="First developed for the US government as a long-endurance surveillance aircraft, the British firm launched a campaign to return the craft to the sky after it fell foul of defence cutbacks" class="blkBorder img-share" height="641" id="i-5cd24f7e41920b9a" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/08/17/21/37563AF600000578-3745794-image-a-33_1471464021232.jpg" width="962" /><div class="share-pictures-overlay" id="share-pictures-6">
  
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First developed for the US government 
as a long-endurance surveillance aircraft, the British firm launched a 
campaign to return the craft to the sky after it fell foul of defence 
cutbacks</div>
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<img alt="After a successful first flight on Wednesday, the aircraft can be seen preparing to land back at the airfield in Bedford" class="blkBorder img-share" height="612" id="i-ed637db4b2225b1b" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/08/18/00/375701E600000578-3745794-image-a-50_1471477538188.jpg" width="962" /><div class="share-pictures-overlay" id="share-pictures-7">
  
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After a successful first flight on Wednesday, the aircraft can be seen preparing to land back at the airfield in Bedford</div>
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<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Unlike hydrogen, the gas used in the Hindenburg, helium is not flammable.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">The
 flight on Wednesday came days after a test flight planned for Sunday 
was scrapped at the last minute because of an unspecified technical 
issue.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Mr McGlennan
 said the team had been waiting for low winds for the launch on 
Wednesday but added the airship could 'operate very happily' in 80 knots
 of wind.</span></div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">He
 said: 'Think of a big helicopter, a really giant helicopter. This can 
do the same thing that a helicopter can do - that's to say, provide air 
transportation for people and goods without the need for a runway - but 
this thing can take more over longer distances, it's cheaper and it's 
greener. </span></div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">McGlennan
 is confident there will be plenty of customers for Airlander — both 
civilian and military — because of its potential to gather data and 
conduct surveillance for days on end.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">It
 can also carry up to 10 metric tons (22,050 pounds) of passengers or 
cargo. The company hopes to have an even bigger aircraft, capable of 
carrying 50 metric tons (110,000 pounds), in service by the early 2020s.</span></div>
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<img alt="Preparations are made for the maiden flight of the Airlander 10, the largest aircraft in the world at the airfield" class="blkBorder img-share" height="540" id="i-512c8029a05f7fa6" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/08/17/20/3J6js6PhxZ24a1421f52b1b11129-3745794-Preparations_are_made_for_the_maiden_flight_of_the_Airlander_10_-a-28_1471463771423.jpg" width="962" /><div class="share-pictures-overlay" id="share-pictures-8">
  
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<span></span>Preparations are made for the maiden flight of the Airlander 10, the largest aircraft in the world at the airfield</div>
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<img alt="Crowds clapped and cheered as the craft soared above them during its first outing from the First World War hangar where it was revealed in March after undergoing 'hundreds' of changes by Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV) over two years" class="blkBorder img-share" height="644" id="i-55f7a38c32dfb2a" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/08/17/20/3756929B00000578-3745794-image-a-31_1471463989821.jpg" width="962" /><div class="share-pictures-overlay" id="share-pictures-9">
  
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Crowds clapped and cheered as the 
craft soared above them during its first outing from the First World War
 hangar where it was revealed in March after undergoing 'hundreds' of 
changes by Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV) over two years</div>
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<img alt="The flight on Wednesday came days after a test flight planned for Sunday was scrapped at the last minute because of an unspecified technical issue." class="blkBorder img-share" height="754" id="i-52ca3a082e218920" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/08/18/01/3756B5EE00000578-3745794-image-a-61_1471478749940.jpg" width="962" /><div class="share-pictures-overlay" id="share-pictures-10">
  
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The flight on Wednesday came days 
after a test flight planned for Sunday was scrapped at the last minute 
because of an unspecified technical issue.</div>
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<img alt="Mr McGlennan said the team had been waiting for low winds for the launch on Wednesday but added the airship could 'operate very happily' in 80 knots of wind" class="blkBorder img-share" height="1401" id="i-e1f7a9eec88efab5" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/08/18/01/3756BBA000000578-3745794-image-a-63_1471478784244.jpg" width="962" /><div class="share-pictures-overlay" id="share-pictures-11">
  
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Mr McGlennan said the team had been 
waiting for low winds for the launch on Wednesday but added the airship 
could 'operate very happily' in 80 knots of wind. <i>dailymail</i></div>
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<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">McGlennan said Airlander has many of the assets of a helicopter.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">It
 can 'provide air transportation for people and goods without the need 
for a runway. But this thing can take more over longer distances, it's 
cheaper and it's greener,' he said.</span></div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Chris Pocock, defense editor of aviation magazine AIN, said the jury is still out on whether the craft is commercially viable.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">'Airships
 and hybrids have still got a credibility gap to cover,' he said. 
'Technically I think they are there now, but economically I'm not so 
sure.'</span></div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Crowds
 clapped and cheered as the craft soared above them during its first 
outing from the First World War hangar where it was revealed in March 
after undergoing 'hundreds' of changes by HAV over two years.</span></div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font">
<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">The
 Airlander took off at approximately 7.40pm and performed one lap of the
 airfield before landing about half an hour later, with light fast 
fading and the moon visible in the sky.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">It
 is about 50ft  longer than the biggest passenger jets but its four 
engines appeared noticeably quieter than a plane or helicopter as it 
took to the skies.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Mr McGlennan, who is not a pilot but has practised flying the craft on a simulator, said it was 'very simple' to manoeuvre.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">He
 said: 'It's a very stable, benign aircraft that responds very gently in
 flight, we expect it to be an unusually calm flight experience.'</span></div>
<div class="mol-para-with-font" id="ext-gen125">
<span style="font-size: 1.2em;">People have been practising to fly it for at least five years, he added.</span></div>
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<img alt="People could be seen by the side of the airfield getting pictures and footage of the momentous flight " class="blkBorder img-share" height="490" id="i-d20de173929858a9" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/08/17/21/3756915B00000578-3745794-image-a-36_1471464036040.jpg" width="962" /><div class="share-pictures-overlay" id="share-pictures-12">
  
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People could be seen by the side of the airfield getting pictures and footage of the momentous flight </div>
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HAV chief executive officer Stephen 
McGlennan said the team had been waiting for low winds for the launch 
but added the airship could 'operate very happily' in 80 knots of wind</div>
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<img alt="The ship is about 50ft (15 metres) longer than the biggest passenger jets but its four engines appeared noticeably quieter than a plane or helicopter as it took to the skies" class="blkBorder img-share" height="641" id="i-b961e1025d7d61b0" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/08/18/00/3757012600000578-3745794-image-a-52_1471477668433.jpg" width="962" /><div class="share-pictures-overlay" id="share-pictures-14">
  
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The ship is about 50ft (15 metres) 
longer than the biggest passenger jets but its four engines appeared 
noticeably quieter than a plane or helicopter as it took to the skies. <i>dailymail</i></div>
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<img alt="Mr McGlennan, who is not a pilot but has practised flying the craft on a simulator, said it was 'very simple' to manoeuvre" class="blkBorder img-share" height="643" id="i-e1846f26d4ac46f8" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/08/18/00/3756D51500000578-3745794-image-a-54_1471477689105.jpg" width="962" /><div class="share-pictures-overlay" id="share-pictures-15">
  
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Mr McGlennan, who is not a pilot but has practised flying the craft on a simulator, said it was 'very simple' to manoeuvre</div>
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<img alt="It took off to a large crowd of people who wanted to witness the inaugural flight of the massive aircraft (pictured)" class="blkBorder img-share" height="594" id="i-1fe9bf6da7c79b88" src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2016/08/18/00/3756D67900000578-3745794-image-a-55_1471477707777.jpg" width="962" /><div class="share-pictures-overlay" id="share-pictures-16">
  
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It took off to a large crowd of people who wanted to witness the inaugural flight of the massive aircraft. <i>dailymail.co.uk</i></div>
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Airlander 10: World's largest aircraft finally takes to the skies

Airlander 10 The world's largest aircraft branded 'the flying bum' has taken to the skies in a successful maiden voyage...

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Airlander 10: World's largest aircraft finally takes to the skies

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