- CLEVELAND -- The Pentagon
has awarded Lockheed Martin Corp. a $US40 million ($58.8m) contract to
develop a high-flying, remote-controlled blimp that would monitor U.S.
borders and scan the horizon for enemy missiles.
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- The idea is to supplement radar and satellites. The helium-filled
dirigibles - about 25 times larger than those seen at sporting events -
could also be used to monitor combat zones overseas.
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- They would patrol at more than 28 kilometres up, and
be powered by the sun.
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- "It's another mix in the multilayered defense sensors,"
Christopher Taylor, a spokesman for the Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency,
said. The goal is to have a prototype ready to fly in 2006. The contract
includes a $50 million option to build one.
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- The agency will direct the design and construction of
the prototype in Akron, Ohio, by Lockheed on behalf of the Department of
Defense, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and the Army.
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- Blimps can peer down into valleys missed by surface radar
and, unlike satellites, their surveillance isn't limited by the earth's
rotation. They can be aloft for months at a time and, unlike satellites,
can land for equipment changes or maintenance.
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- Depending on tests, the Pentagon will order an undetermined
number of the blimps, Taylor said. The Department of Homeland Security,
which includes border patrols, also will consider ordering blimps, he said.
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- Last year, NORAD proposed stationing 10 ships to cover
America's borders. The Coast Guard and customs agents already use radar
on low-altitude tethered balloons to scan for drug smugglers. The Navy
discontinued its blimp program in 1962.
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- Akron's Lockheed Martin Airdock, where the blimp is to
be developed about 48 kilometres south of Cleveland, was once the site
of mass production of U.S. Navy surveillance airships during World War
II.
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- The prototype will be about 150 metres long, 48 metres
in diameter and have a volume of 5.2 million cubic feet. A typical commercial
blimp is about 60 metres long and 21 metres in diameter.
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- Copyright 2003 News Limited.
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- http://www.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,7428326%255E1702,00.html
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