Airships are an Ideal Platform for Many Government Surveillance Missions:

Maritime Patrol
Border Patrol
VIP Security
Key Installation Security
Counter Narcotics
Anti-Smuggling
COMINT/SIGINT

While each of the above missions requires a somewhat different suite of mission equipment, all the missions benefit from the airship's unique capability to remain on station, or cruise on patrol, for extended periods before having to land to refuel. (Click on the picture to view a 49 kB enlargement of the SPECTOR^TM-42 on its first flight, 8 January 1997, Tustin, California.)

The American Blimp Corporation SPECTOR^TM Series of airships will carry sophisticated payloads for each of the above missions (or multi-mission suites), and cruise at 40 ktas, or 74 kph (46 mph), for over 24 hours with reserve fuel remaining. SPECTOR^TM airships can fly at altitudes up to 1500 m (4921 ft), with more than 1 metric tonne (2200 lb) available for mission crew and payload.

The performance of the airship in meeting the mission requirements depends on the selection of the mission equipment. Some available sensor equipment is shown below:

• Maritime Surface Search Radar
• Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) for Ground Targets
• Fully stabilized FLIR, Long and Short Wavelengths
• Broadcast Quality, Fully Stabilized Color TV
• ESM Suite for Communications and Other RF
• 100,000,000 Candlepower Searchlight
• Complete "Real Time" Data Link Systems

For example, an airship equipped for providing surveillance of a border might have a mission system comprised of the following:

Qty Mission Suite Components 1 FLIR system with boresighted color TV camera 1 SAR 1 Workstation integrating data from the sensor suite 1 Searchlight and loudhailer system 1 Data link to provide surface forces with real time sensor data from the airship

To this suite could be added additional communication radios for automatic relay, greatly extending the communication range of ground units.

For VIP security, the above suite might be changed by removing the radar and installing a second EO pod with dual TV cameras to provide greater surveillance over crowds and urban areas.

Regardless of your specific needs, American Blimp Corporation will configure the mission and communication equipment to fully satisfy your requirements for commonality, performance and cost. We have no exclusive agreements for mission equipment, and welcome the opportunity of developing a custom mission suite to meet your most stringent requirements.

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