There may be more to the aspirations of the Russian company Aerosmena to construct massive cargo airships than merely hot air.

Originally led by experienced Russian aircraft designer Orfey Kozlov (who sadly passed away due to COVID-19 last year), the firm’s cargo airship will be capable of carrying out loading and unloading operations on the field regardless of ground infrastructure. This means no need for ports, roadways, airports, or runways. It will even be able to hover over terrain and retrieve cargo using a pulley system. Aerosmena’s airship can pick up cargo from a hovering position. Source: Aerosmena

“The transportation of goods using such [a design] is carried out according to a simple door-to-door scheme, which will help to [reduce] costs for logistics and warehouses,” Aerosmena CEO Sergei V. Bendin said in an emailed statement with Interesting Engineering

The airship’s design also includes two gas chambers to provide lift. For the 600 ton model, 620,000 cubic meters of helium will be utilized for practically “zero” buoyancy. A large cavity filled with air heated to 200 degrees Celsius (392 Fahrenheit) by the exhaust of eight helicopter engines is responsible for lifting the payload.Several companies are turning to airship technology amidst new mobility innovations. Source: Aerosmena