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First of all, as a pilot who has been flying since I was 15 and logged over 100 hours of cross country time, I can honestly say that I have no idea how you would fly a LTA aircraft 50 miles let alone around the world. And since I dont know with my couple of hundred hours as a pilot, im going to give a nickel's worth of free advice and tell you to put your energy into something that wont kill you. Perhaps youve heard of Sir Richard Branson? Hes a multi-millionaire that tried several times to do what youre describing and almost killed himself. He tried with the best airship that money could buy and still had trouble.
All of this said, I have to say that this does sound like someone trolling or some random nut................................ but if you did pull it off you would be the most famous person in aviation since Lindy.
Unfortunately a plane has to be refueled. I can't pay for that kind of thing. Not to mention more maintenance than I can give. If I build my blimp and make it with a furnace I can just buy something to burn and float. The propellers and the air are going to be helping me with my direction a bit more than anything else could on a hot air balloon. I do have the plan still forming. And I have decided to cut somethings down due to the weight. And where would the fun be in a plane?
Aviation seems to have more than its share of individuals who come to succeed at tasks others have tried and failed. This is the story of one such man, Marvin Polzien from Ardmore, Oklahoma, an active 71-year-old with a quick smile and an infectious enthusiasm.
Aviation seems to have more than its share of individuals who come to succeed at tasks others have tried and failed. This is the story of one such man, Marvin Polzien from Ardmore, Oklahoma, an active 71-year-old with a quick smile and an infectious enthusiasm.
This is the story of one such man, Marvin Polzien from Ardmore, Oklahoma, an active 71-year-old with a quick smile and an infectious enthusiasm.
The more recent story about the emergency landing is dated this past Dec. 2009 and he's 79 yrs old and still at it apparently. This guy also is an experienced pilot and owns other aircraft - to say nothing of evidently having the money to indulge himself:
Quote:
Now he owns a Piper Malibu DLX, a couple of Bonanza’s, a powered parachute, and a hot air balloon.
On the pessimistic side (which I am usually not) he is an experienced pilot with at least eight years of blimp flying experience and he is still crashing. I don't see this as a "around the world" type of hobby.
OP -- if you think that you can do aviation "on the cheap" ... I suggest you find another outlet for your energies.
As an experienced pilot, I can also tell you that there's a lot more to aviation than simply having an aircraft ... you need to participate in the airspace system, and that requires training and knowledge.
You cannot just take off and travel at your whim anywhere and anyplace. In the USA, which has the most favorable situation for private aviation travel, there's still a lot of restrictions. Head out of the USA, and you'll find that most countries seriously restrict air travel and tax and regulate it very heavily.
Your exchange with another pilot indicates the extent of your ignorance of air travel. A "sectional" is an aviation dedicated chart ... a map ... of the airspace across the country. It shows the terrain, and has a great deal of information needed to navigate and participate in the airspace system, as well as showing you places where you cannot fly.
There's a whole bunch more you'd need to know to even begin to fly such a craft as you propose ... metereology is just a beginning. Without that knowledge, you're nothing but an accident looking for an opportunity to crash.
Even with that knowledge, people with far more expertise and money than you to indulge this type of aviation still have a low success rate.
At a minimum, I'd suggest that you get your glider and hot-air ballon ratings before building any craft. It might give you some perspective and training about what you're thinking you want to do instead of having unrealistic dreams.
On the pessimistic side (which I am usually not) he is an experienced pilot with at least eight years of blimp flying experience and he is still crashing. I don't see this as a "around the world" type of hobby.
Agreed! To the OP, listen to the words of experienced pilots. That Okie had experience, which no doubt allowed him to "crash land" on the interstate rather than in a field or in some trees. I love the idea of a man/woman following their dreams, and it's not like he is the first to experience a mechanical malfunction.
Major kudos to Marvin Polzein, the man who lives his life doing what he loves. Beats sitting in a nursing home.
Cheap is something that is only allowed by my budget. I am wanting pilots and aviation experts to be here so that they can tell me what the proper way to do this is. As a novice, I wish to learn more. So basically I want to do this with the knowledge that others (whom are more knowledgeable than me) can give me. I plan on finishing this blimp so that I can learn and do it again. But I am going to eventually get to building one that is full sized. It makes me happy that y'all can support me, but for those whom I have heard from that who try to squash my dreams, I will not listen to them. I want to learn more though.
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