I been alive for a long time and one thing I come to understand is when there is something to try to figure out, usually the simplest of explanations is the answer......my guess is that if the balloon-in-the-box or Argus was as good as everyone thinks, we would of had some serious interest, from some interested party, around the globe. Either in the form of contracts or legitimate financiers.
We are in a point in time where surveillance as become a strong market, not just for military applications, but for border control and local governments. So it seems to me that other products or technology is meeting this demand.
Maybe the Army testing of the two balloons they bought takes years, far from my level of experience on such matters, I don't know. Seems like Ft. Polk have been toying around with them for a long time.
