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Post by the light works on Nov 27, 2013 14:58:23 GMT
Shooting at aircraft is, in the UK and probably most places, considered an act of terrorism - even using laser pointers at aircraft is considered terrorism. The reason is that if you do bring an aircraft down it would be on top of innocent people - and even the dumbest crooks tend to realise this would not be a smart thing to do as the local police would literally be the least of their worries. of course, now we are getting twisted individuals who are manufacturing opportunities to shoot at emergency responders.
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Post by Lokifan on Nov 27, 2013 17:40:46 GMT
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Post by silverdragon on Nov 28, 2013 8:55:01 GMT
Tis is all because some people find it "Funny" to try and blind the pilots?.... Yes, too weird to be untrue.
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Post by the light works on Nov 28, 2013 14:28:19 GMT
Tis is all because some people find it "Funny" to try and blind the pilots?.... Yes, too weird to be untrue. well, the jury is still out on whether most of them have malicious intent or not - but it is the results that matter, and at best it is a nuisance, and at worst, (barring the tiny chance of actually hitting a pilot in the eye and doing damage) it can obstruct their forward vision at a critical moment and cause a crash. (many cockpit windows are made out of a material that scatters laser light, essentially turning it from a window into a light panel.)
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Post by wvengineer on Nov 29, 2013 1:18:49 GMT
Back when I lived in Long Beach, CA, you would commonly see the Goodyear blimp flying around the city. They were quite common to show up at various large sporting events. I went to a Dodgers games where they hung out for the day.
I knew a person in law enforcement in the area and according to him, the LAPD and other departments had a deal with good year to use the dirigible as a mobile patrol platform. The thing is outfitted with a bunch of high powered cameras that they use to keep an eye on the crowds and traffic. They can report potential problems and ground units can intercede before they get bad.
They also have loud speakers and large LED marquee signs that can be used as a public address system if needed. Usually they just fly around and everyone things it is just a large billboard.
I don't know this for certain, but I take this guy at his word.
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Post by the light works on Nov 29, 2013 2:32:29 GMT
Back when I lived in Long Beach, CA, you would commonly see the Goodyear blimp flying around the city. They were quite common to show up at various large sporting events. I went to a Dodgers games where they hung out for the day. I knew a person in law enforcement in the area and according to him, the LAPD and other departments had a deal with good year to use the dirigible as a mobile patrol platform. The thing is outfitted with a bunch of high powered cameras that they use to keep an eye on the crowds and traffic. They can report potential problems and ground units can intercede before they get bad. They also have loud speakers and large LED marquee signs that can be used as a public address system if needed. Usually they just fly around and everyone things it is just a large billboard. I don't know this for certain, but I take this guy at his word. I was sort of going in that direction earlier in the thread. I had assumed that Goodyear was probably asked to be available to help with things, when they were running the blimps.
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Post by paulsee on Nov 30, 2013 14:53:14 GMT
Very interesting idea. Should have some merits concerning the low amount of noise generated and the capability to just hover and maintain long term surveillance. With the proper surveillance equipment should be quite useful.
I am not sure if it is cheaper to operate though. The army tried to have their airship surveillance platform, and it came out quite expensive.
A bit off topic, if it is economically possible, bringing tourists around airships should be a nice way to see the sights. (Weather permitting of course).
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Post by the light works on Dec 10, 2013 15:08:34 GMT
Very interesting idea. Should have some merits concerning the low amount of noise generated and the capability to just hover and maintain long term surveillance. With the proper surveillance equipment should be quite useful. I am not sure if it is cheaper to operate though. The army tried to have their airship surveillance platform, and it came out quite expensive. A bit off topic, if it is economically possible, bringing tourists around airships should be a nice way to see the sights. (Weather permitting of course). yes, there are several ways they can defray the operating costs.
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