Russian engineers develop new surveillance, missile defense airships

Russian engineers are designing new advanced airships which may become a potent element of the country's anti-ballistic missile defenses.

On May 6, 1937, the German passenger airship Hindenburg crashed in the US during a docking attempt, dealing a critical blow to the public's faith in this method of transportation.

And yet despite the fact that mankind has since perfected other methods of airborne transportation, blimps and dirigibles are still being used for a variety of purposes including military ones, and Russian Armed Forces are no exception.

In 2015 Vladimir Mikheev, advisor to the first deputy head of Radio-Electronic Technologies Concern (KRET), revealed that the company started working on a new type of airship that may well become a full-fledged component of Russia's early warning system.

The new multifunctional airship, Atlant-30, is expected to make its first flight in 2018. The airship will be able to carry up to 170 tons of payload and operate at altitudes up to 10,000 meters, allowing it to detect enemy warheads at the boost and final stages of their flight trajectories.

Furthermore, the airship's high cargo capacity – Atlant's largest modification is expected to be able to airlift up to 3 fully-equipped T-90 main battle tanks or 8 BMP-3 infantry fighting vehicles – make it a capable transport carrier.

Berkut's primary goal will be aerial photography, surveillance and communication, but the airship could also be employed for more militant pursuits like electronic warfare, target designation and air defense.

It should be noted that stratosphere airships may become a cheap and efficient replacement for communication satellites, both civilian and military, as a blimp soaring at an altitude of 20 kilometers can provide communication coverage at 760-kilometer radius.