flying aircraft carrier, to make drones even more effective

Drones are an increasingly important part of the US military arsenal. Low-cost, low-risk, alternatives to manned aircraft, they are versatile while at the same time becoming increasingly powerful. However, their speed and range is typically much more limited than that of our manned aircraft. DARPA is looking to fix that shortcoming by soliciting ideas for airborne aircraft carriers — or as DARPA calls them “aircraft carriers in the sky.” Right now it is just a call for ideas, but it is likely only a matter of time until a solution is developed and deployed. Many of us in the ET bunker are hoping it will be at least as cool as the helicarriers used by S.H.I.E.L.D. in The Avengers.

Sound crazy? We’ve done it before and it worked!

To be recovered, planes would actually fly back onto the hook from which they were launched

On the face of it, the idea might seem a little far-fetched, but it won’t be the first time military aircraft have been launched and recovered from the air. The US Naval airships Macon and Akron (officially ZRS-4 and ZRS-5) were floating aircraft hangars and air fields all-in-one, designed for very similar reasons before World War II. In that era, the small bi-planes used for scouting had very limited range compared to the oceans we needed to watch. So these 1000-foot-long airships were designed to carry up to five F9C-2 Curtiss Sparrowhawk scout planes that could be launched and recovered using a trapeze-shaped hook system worthy of one of Houdini’s airborne stunts.
Amazingly, neither airship ever had an accident with its airplanes. Launch and recovery were flawless during the years they operated. Unfortunately, both ships were eventually destroyed in crashes due to bad weather, and the Navy discontinued the program. Now all that is left is the huge “Hangar 1″ at Moffet Field, built to house the Macon. Anyone who has been to Silicon Valley has no doubt seen it and known that it had something to do with airships, but most don’t know the full story. The hangar was recently leased out to Google — $1 billion for a 10-year lease — where it will be conveniently located close to a new Google research campus, which is also being built on the former naval base.

Hangar 1 at Moffet Field — Home of the first airborne airship, gutted and ready for restoration [Image credit: Annie Cardinal]

What this means for our use of drones

DARPA believes that developing the capability for the aerial launch and recovery of drones would allow our military to combine the benefits of drones with the speed, range, and endurance of manned craft into a blended approach. While it stresses potential uses for “intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance” it also gives a nod to the increasing use of weaponized drones by saying the system would be useful for “other” missions as well. Eschewing a return to the old, slow airship era, DARPA suggests contributors look to planes like the military transporter C-130 for launch and recovery.
Respondents are invited to provide eight pages or less on how they propose modifying existing craft, and an analysis of the benefits that might provide — with a plan on how to get to system test within four years.