23rd Congress of International Council of the Aeronautical Sciences, 8-13 September, 2002, Toronto, Canada
Paper ICAS 2002-P9

DESIGN TRENDS AND GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS IN MODERN LTA VEHICLES

B. Nagabushan, L. J. Valera
Saint Louis University, USA

Keywords: lta, global developments, design

Design trends of modern LTA vehicles, which are being developed around the world are presented. These include: semi-rigid structure with conventional aerodynamic shaping, as well as, twin hull structure; propulsion using marine diesel engines and gas turbine engines, coupled with vectorable propellers/fans for cruise/lift augmentation; bow and stern thrusters for low speed maneuverability; FBW/fiber optic control paths and automatic flight control; composite materials which enhance strength to weight ratio to improve performance and safety. The paper describes four significant developments around the world which include: heavy lift cargo transporter, tethered aerostat, hybrid buoyant air cushion vehicle and solar powered stratospheric LTA platform.

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