Blimp on a cruise ship?

Jun 08, 2009 0 Comments by nathan

A blimp on a ship? Sort of. I came across these photos of the newly built Oasis of the Seas testing the feasibility of deploying an aerostator tethered balloon. The world’s largest cruise ship afloat was conducting sea trials and added testing the feasibility test of a tethered balloon to the extensive 3-day sea trial period off the shores of Turku Finland.

Will we actually see this concept used when the ship carries passengers? Perhaps not. Royal Caribbean says this is nothing but an experiment, and the company itself gives the project a 50/50 chance of success. Royal Caribbean Chairman Richard Fain says

If we don’t use it on the ship, I will consider it just another of the many ideas our people develop that didn’t work. On the other hand, if it is successful and we do decide to use it on the ship, I will consider it another of my better ideas.

Hard to believe, but true. I didn’t believe the pictures were real until I found the video on the STX Europe website. With or without the aerostat, the ship will still be one of the most unique and innovative cruise ships built to this date. It will have the first shipboard carousel, an outdoor amphitheater, open-air two-story loft suites, and an open-air central park space along the centerline of the after portion of the ship.