. Military Space News .
Sanswire Networks Demonstrates Sky Dragon Military Airship

A Stratellite is similar to a satellite, but is stationed in the stratosphere rather than in orbit, and operates at an altitude of approximately 13 miles.

Fort Lauderdale FL (SPX) Nov 16, 2005
GlobeTel Communications has announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Sanswire Networks, has successfully completed its planned demonstration flight of its military prototype airship.

The flight consisted of two military prototypes of varied size, both of which were flown for the benefit of a number of approved senior military and national security officials. The flights took place at the Sanswire facility in Palmdale, California, on Nov. 15, 2005.

The design of the military version airship is of a unique and proprietary nature and has been designed to meet specific requirements of certain military and government needs. These airships complement and share much of the underlying technology of the suite of near-space vehicles currently being developed for commercial applications. The airships flown today have been designated "Sky Dragon."

The first flight took place Tuesday morning on November 15th at 10:30 am PST and the second flight occurred later in the day. The airships performed exactly as expected, with exceptional results. The controlled-access event was attended by 25 VIPs, U.S. Government guests representing, among others, the U.S. Air Force, Department of Homeland Security, NASA, the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Army, FEMA, and other distinguished invitees.

Sky Dragon was assembled at the Palmdale facility and test flown multiple times prior to the event. The Sanswire team, together with Sanswire's strategic partners, Dr. Bernd Kroeplin and Tao Technologies, in cooperation with University of Stuttgart in Germany, managed and hosted the demonstration.

Bob Jones, President of Sanswire Networks , commented: "We are extremely pleased with the results of this event. The prototype performed flawlessly and our guests were very pleased with the significant progress that has been made since the platforms were initially presented. The visiting dignitaries also expressed great pleasure at the design and products available in the Sanswire High-Altitude Airship Program.

The airships that were demonstrated Nov. 15 were designed specifically for specialized military and governmental applications. A number of senior-level decision makers within the government commented that these successful demonstrations represent mature steps in the evolution of Sanswire's overall airship program; and, I could not be more pleased with their enthusiasm. This event marks our commitment in providing performance and capability to our customers as promised."

Timothy Huff, CEO of GlobeTel, added: "We have made significant strides in our airship program and within our business units, in general. I am pleased that GlobeTel and our subsidiaries are performing as expected and I look forward to the continued acceleration of our business growth. The success of the military version of our high-altitude airship is another important milestone in the evolution of our Sanswire program. I am very pleased, but not surprised, by the successful outcome of this event."

Dr. Kroeplin confirmed as well: "It was an honor to present this technology to our distinguished guests. The response to the technology and the flight demonstration was exciting and very well received. We will continue to develop other types of 'specialmission' air vehicles - in cooperation with our partner, Sanswire. I believe there is much we can do in the very near term, which can benefit our world."

Sanswire's military version airships can operate within an altitude range of between 5,000 and 70,000 feet AGL, with varying payloads. A Stratellite, by contrast, is similar to a satellite, but is stationed in the stratosphere rather than in orbit, and operates at an altitude of approximately 13 miles.

At an altitude of 10 to 13 miles above the Earth, each Stratellite will have clear line-of-sight communications capability to an entire major metropolitan area, as well as being able to provide coverage across major rural areas. Sanswire 2 is currently under construction and is expected to be completed and operational, as planned. Several Stratellites linked together have the ability to cover many hundreds of thousands of square miles.

The Stratellite will allow subscribers to easily communicate in "both directions" using readily available wireless devices. In addition to voice and data, other telecommunications uses include cellular, 3G/4G mobile, MMDS, paging, fixed wireless telephony, HDTV, real-time surveillance and others.

Related Links
GlobeTel Communications
SpaceDaily
Search SpaceDaily
Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express

Dragon Eye Protects Troops, Improves Recon
Jalalabad, Afghanistan (SPX) Nov 07, 2005
U. S. Marines and sailors from 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, Marine Corps Base Hawaii, use the Dragon Eye to minimize friendly casualties and maximize surveillance during missions in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.







  • Analysis: American Dynastic Diplomacy
  • Hu Says Stronger China Means Peace, Stability
  • Walker's World: Navy's China Diplomacy
  • US Needs Strong Military Presence In Asia: Study

  • Iran Starts New Round Of Uranium Conversion: Diplomats
  • Is An Iran Nuke Compromise Viable
  • Iran Warns UN Nuclear Watchdog Ahead Of Key Meeting
  • Analysis: N.Korea Unveils Disarmament Plan

  • US Discussing Missile Defense Site In Europe With Poland
  • Italy, ATK And U.S. Navy Sign MoU For AARGM Missile Development
  • Raytheon Receives $1.3Bn Contract Modification For JLENS Development
  • AquaCell Helps To Keep The Missile Factory Clean

  • Sea-Based X-Band Radar Begins Transport Operation Through Straits Of Magellan
  • Poland Bids For 'Son Of Star Wars' Missile Defence: Report
  • BMD Focus: New Near Space Vision
  • BMD Watch: Nuke SCUD Threat To U.S.

  • Russia, India To Build New Multi-Purpose Transport Plane: Minister
  • Lockheed Martin Adds Networked Combat Air Simulation To The Center For Innovation
  • Raytheon's RAPID Solution Supporting U.S. Army's FCA Supply Needs
  • NASA Flying Wing Model Soars In Historic Wind Tunnel

  • Sanswire Networks Demonstrates Sky Dragon Military Airship
  • Dragon Eye Protects Troops, Improves Recon
  • Northrop Grumman Awarded Contract to Produce RQ-4B Global Hawks
  • Singapore Looking To Buy Unmanned Surveillance Aircraft

  • Five US Marines Killed In Iraq
  • Eyes In The Skies Keep Insurgents On Defensive
  • Bipartisan Consensus Emerging For Change Of Course In Iraq
  • Scan Eagle UAV Keep Iraqi Insurgents On Defensive

  • France, Italy Sign Multi-Billion-Euro Frigate Deal
  • EADS To Supply Digital Map Generators For Eurofighter And Tornado
  • VMA-214 Makes Aviation Munitions History Aboard Peleliu
  • EADS To Supply Digital Map Generators For Eurofighter And Tornado

  • The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2006 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA PortalReports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additionalcopyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement