There is an interesting news from Russia that a company called LocomoSky in their Ulianovsk of Volga is carrying out a government funded project to produce a bizarre hybrid of helicopter and aerostat, UFO alike "flying saucers".
The prototype, named "aerostatic thermoballasted vehicle" or simply "Locomoskayner" after its manufacturer, was presented in the MAKS-2009 International Aviation and Space Salon air show in Russia recently.
This prototype flying saucer was 23 feet in diameter, and was claimed to be able to transport 20 kg of cargo.
The company, however, plans to produce aircraft with a cargo-carrying capacity of up to 600 metric tons or a passenger capacity of up to 11,000 people.
Having low fuel consumption as compared to ordinary aircraft due to its aerodynamic form, the flying saucer will be able to hover, perform a vertical landing, move in a straight line with speeds close to 100 km/h, turn around, and most importantly, need no special ground-based facilities to land.
With its special flying characteristics and superb loading capacity, it will be able to transport out-sized cargoes to remote and inaccessible areas.
Let's see whether this dream will come into reality in the very near future.
