Oh really? Lockheed? Pour more good money after bad? Do you think Uncle Sam might be getting wise to that money pit and possibly looking for a fresh new approach? We need these platforms sooner rather than later. Lockheed is very good at milking the government cow for years on a project.
I find it interesting that Sanswire-TAO demonstrates their airships for various parties in Stuttgart on June 25-28, and by the way, this did include the U.S. Government and U.S. Navy officials, and on July 11, less than 2 weeks later, Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England requests an additional $10 million in funding.
DOD also wants to add $10 million to the Army Space and Missile Defense Command's High-Altitude Airship effort, a project that has seen funding reductions in recent years.
“Ongoing efforts have considered whether HAA can effectively and efficiently perform persistent 24/7 surveillance of U.S. East and Gulf coasts,” the notice continues. “The platform... would offer long-term persistent performance at a lower cost when compared with existing or projected systems. This funding demonstration would evaluate the HAA’s effectiveness at 60,000 feet; its ability to carry a 50-pound payload; and its endurance, reusability and speed.”
It wouldn't surprise me at all to see some of this money, if approved, directed our way. These people aren't idiots. I'm sure they are aware of Globetel's SEC problems and how they are operating in survival mode to keep the company afloat. They are also aware that if they simply sit back and let this company fail, they might lose out on some pretty promising technology, or at least have to wait a few more years for Lockheed to milk to cow while developing it.
...and on the 7th day, God turned off his Macintosh.
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