US Army tests a system of blimp-like airships for missile defense

The US Army does have a fair number of ”toys” to play around with, where you can be sure that all of these “toys” would come in handy on the battlefield – as well as in passive defense. In fact, they have just revealed an airship that resembles that of a blimp, where this particular airship was specially designed to assist the military in detecting and destroying cruise missiles that are sent hurtling by the enemy in the direction of the capital – as well as other major East Coast cities, where it will hopefully be able to avert any potential wartime attacks.

The Army showed off a blimp-like airship Wednesday that is designed to help the military detect and destroy cruise missiles speeding toward the nation’s capital or other major East Coast cities. The radar-toting vehicle will be launched next week as part of a three-year test of the system at Aberdeen Proving Ground, about 25 miles northeast of Baltimore. When fully deployed next spring, the system will feature two, unmanned, helium-filled aerostats, tethered to concrete pads 4 miles apart. They’ll float at an altitude of 10,000 feet, about one-third as high as a commercial airliner’s cruising altitude. One balloon will continuously scan in a circle from upstate New York to North Carolina’s Outer Banks, and as far west as central Ohio. The other will carry precision radar to help the military on the ground to pinpoint targets. The aerostats won’t carry weapons, military officials said. Enemy missiles would be destroyed by air-, ground- or ship-based weapons.