FLUG REVUE December 2002: Zeppelin sightseeing flights a success

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SUCCESSFUL SEASON FOR ZEPPELIN NT

By Sebastian Steinke

It may sound at first glance quite staggering, yet it is true: a modern production Zeppelin is today in passenger service in Germany and is even a commercial success. Since Deutsche Zeppelin Reederei (DZR) received its operating licence in the middle of August 2001, the company has, according to its own figures, carried over 10,000 passengers. Between the end of March and the beginning of October 2002 alone, it carried some 8,700 passengers. Wolfgang Schröder, Technical Operations Manager at DZR, explained this positive demand in an interview with FLUG REVUE as follows. "With the Zeppelin NT we are homing in on the tradition of the huge, familiar silver cigars, while at the same time opening up a new market. With the Zeppelin NT it is possible to travel in a pleasant manner and survey the landscape and its sightseeing attractions from the air.” Moreover, Schröder believes that the airship mode of transport has met with special sympathy from the population. "The image of the Zeppelin is not only peaceful, good-natured and friendly, but it possesses outstanding flying characteristics that people want to experience at first hand.”

What he is referring to here above all is the generally quieter form of motion compared with the aeroplane, the tranquil cruising speed of 80km/h and the low altitude of around 500m, which affords an excellent view of the ground. On the Zeppelin NT, the engines are not attached to the passenger cabin, as is normally the case on non-rigid airships. For the passengers this means significantly less noise and vibration.

The Zeppelin NT could be viewed last year not just above its home of Friedrichshafen on Lake Constance and the surrounding area, but the airship was also to be seen over Berlin, Stuttgart and Munich. In 2003, Schröder is prepared to divulge, it will fly over Breisgau and the Rhine-Main area as well. Munich and Berlin are also being considered.

The Zeppelin's first passengers were inveterate fans of the original Zeppelin, their average age diplomatically put by Wolfgang Schröder at "over 50”. But now more and more younger passengers are becoming attracted to the idea of flying on a Zeppelin. Office parties, anniversaries and gift vouchers are ways of attracting new customer groups. A Zeppelin flight does not exactly come cheap: a typical one-hour sightseeing trip costs the princely sum of Euro 335 during the week and Euro 370 at weekends.

As well as passenger services, the manufacturer, Zeppelin Luftschiffbau, and the operator Deutsche Zeppelin Reederei, which employ a total workforce of 100, are always on the lookout for extra sources of income. Thus the prototype of the Zeppelin NT was used this year as a research platform for the German Aerospace Centre (DLR), simulating a GPS navigation satellite for a ground station. Various EU-funded research projects, such as traffic observation flights over densely populated areas and mine clearance missions, are also planned. Another business idea to be stepped up, according to Schröder, is marketing of the huge advertising surface area on the airships.

The range of the Zeppelin NT, which is equipped with the avionics necessary for instrument flights but has not yet been certificated for IFR, is about 1,000km. Its cruising speed is 90 to 110km/h and its maximum altitude, known as the "pressure altitude”, is about 9,000m. From a technical point of view, the Zeppelin has a lot more potential than simply to be used for sightseeing trips. Thus DZR already has its eye on longer cruise routes and has begun carrying passengers on ferry flights within Germany as well. So far the longest distance the NT has flown was a flight from Nordholz to Friedrichshafen which lasted ten-and-a-half hours.

When deployed away from home, typically the Zeppelin stays between four and eight weeks in an external location. It would of course be possible to extend such stays. When asked if he has any interest in the CargoLifter hangar in Brand, Wolfgang Schröder replied, "It could be useful as a maintenance hangar. But for our airships a much smaller hangar is sufficient.” He does concede that he has already thought about a larger version of the NT, adding, "When such a project gets under way will depend on market requirements.”

At present, a second NT production airship is being built in Friedrichshafen for passenger services. The estimated cost of this airship, including mast aircraft, tank trailer and ground-support equipment is Euro 8 million. As well as the four existing Zeppelin pilots, another three are currently undergoing training. By March 2003, when the new Zeppelin is ready, DZR plans to have finished expanding its infrastructure for the second production airship and to then utilise both production NTs at a profit in passenger operations.

From page 26 of FLUG REVUE 12/2002

Last updated 4 November 2002

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