There's a lot of classic amature inaccuracies in the quotes. The fact is, history attests that airships are very resiliant (if filled with inert gas). They can absorb a vast amount gunfire and continue to remain airborne/operate. From the air vehicle perspective, they are far more survivable than any heavier than air (fixed/rotary wing).
As far as being a BIG radar target - I would have to refer to the experts on that. I submit that the envelope should be near invisible to radar. I would also submit that commercial airliners and military logistics aircraft and helos are all easy targets for IR SAMS. Airships use different engines than most military aircraft (gas turbine) so the color IR missiles look for may not be there...but I don't know for sure. Conciveably, an airship could arrive at a point upwind of the area of interest and turn it engines off to drift with the wind. I've often thought this would be particularly effective over Iraq so we could catch the bad guys in the act with snipers.
For the surveillance missions being considered, you have to ask, is it more or less vulnerable than current vehicles? Even if it proves to be more vulnerable for one reason or another, the risk might be acceptable since airships are so cheap to procure and operate relative to all other programs.
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