It is nothing if not ambitious: a plan to race airships around the globe on a route that will take the vast craft over such famous historical sites as the Pyramids of Giza and the Taj Mahal.
The project is the brainchild of Don Hartsell, 61, a resolutely upbeat Texan who first conceived the idea in his early 20s.
In recent years after completing his last work assignment – a project to help digitise archives for the authorities in Texas – Mr Hartsell has dedicated himself to seeing the World Sky Race get off the ground at last.
And the race, scheduled to start in September 2016, could even stop off in the Arabian Gulf region, possibly in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Doha or Muscat.
Mr Hartsell was recently in Abu Dhabi to promote his race and seek UAE support, speaking to staff and students at the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology.
He describes his pet project as “crazy, outside the box but thoughtful”.
“There’s a possibility the World Sky Race will end up being based for the Gulf coast in Abu Dhabi but we’re not going to rule out Doha, Dubai or Muscat, because there’s interest there as well,” Mr Hartsell said during his visit.
“One of these cities will be our selected host site.”
If it goes ahead, the race would begin at the Greenwich Meridian in London and, over 18 races and six months, circumnavigate the globe before reaching a spectacular finale in the grounds of the Palace of Versailles in Paris.
Along the way, the airships would need about 55 airfields for maintenance and refuelling.
Organisers have so far reached agreements with 44 airfields that could be involved, and secured access to fuel for 20 airships.
Mr Hartsell hopes schools around the globe could follow the race, focusing on the geography, history, culture and environment of the countries over which the airships pass.
Each airship would have a title sponsor and possibly a national, regional, state or city affiliation.
Audacious though the World Sky Race may seem, it is just the starting point for what Mr Hartsell thinks could be a modern-day renaissance in the popularity of airships.
In the 1920s and 1930s, he says, there was “significant technological competition” between airships and aeroplanes.
Back then, aeroplanes could carry a maximum of four people, while there were airships taking to the skies capable of carrying 120.
“When airplanes could barely make it to the next destination, airships were travelling between Europe and South America,” Mr Hartsell says.
“The reason the aeroplane overtook and [became] the primary means of movement in the skies was the dependability, for being able to take off and land without ground crews.
“The disadvantage of airships was having 40-odd people waiting for an airship to move or depart as part of the landing or take-off procedure.”
And then there was the 1937 Hindenburg disaster, when the giant German airship, filled with hydrogen instead of the non-flammable helium used in today’s airships, caught fire while trying to dock in the United States, killing 36 people including one member of the ground crew.
The tragedy, captured by television cameras and now immortalised on YouTube, stifled the development of passenger services and by the Second World War, only the US was still developing military airships.
Since then the aeroplane, with its greater speed and higher payload capacity, has cemented its dominance of the skies.
Yet with energy efficiency a growing concern, Mr Hartsell says the pendulum has partly swung back in favour of airships.
“The physics is that it takes 90 per cent of the energy of an aeroplane to get in the air and stay in the air, and 10 per cent to go forward,” he says.
“The airship is lighter than air. It is going to save as much as 85 per cent of the energy to move that mass forward. That translates into 85 per cent less pollution.”
In particular, Mr Hartsell considers airships valuable for carrying freight in less developed parts of the world, as the craft could reduce the need for expensive infrastructure such as road and rail networks.
They would also reduce the amount of environmental damage that could be caused by such infrastructure.
Airships, he predicts, will become the “go-to technology” for freight transport for those parts of the world not yet linked to major road, rail or air networks.
“We live in the 60 per cent [of the world] where we have roads, railroads, harbours and runways,” Mr Hartsell says. “The other 40 per cent is on footpaths.
“Forty per cent of the world is not even serviced by aircraft.
“An airship could cover that 40 per cent without building those railroads or roads.”
While they cannot match the speed of conventional aircraft, airships travelling at almost 195kph outpace sea, rail or road transport, he says.
Mr Hartsell cites technological advances as making airship transport more attractive than it was in the 1930s, when the gas cells for many airships were made from the lining of cattle intestines.
Major companies such as Lockheed Martin are looking at hybrid designs, between airships and aeroplanes, by developing craft that use the buoyancy of gas with, for example, helicopter rotor blades.
Such aircraft should be able to carry more than a typical airship while not using as much fuel as a plane.
“Today we’re able to move forward with what we know as an engineering community, a design community,” says Mr Hartsell.
We also have technology such as carbon composites, more advanced avionics and a better understanding of winds, he says.
“It was said that the golden age of airships was in the 1930s. With today’s needs and capabilities, the golden age of airships will be this century.”
newsdesk@thenational.ae
Company name: Play:Date
Launched: March 2017 on UAE Mother’s Day
Founder: Shamim Kassibawi
Based: Dubai with operations in the UAE and US
Sector: Tech
Size: 20 employees
Stage of funding: Seed
Investors: Three founders (two silent co-founders) and one venture capital fund
Zimbabwe v UAE, ODI series
All matches at the Harare Sports Club:
1st ODI, Wednesday, April 10
2nd ODI, Friday, April 12
3rd ODI, Sunday, April 14
4th ODI, Tuesday, April 16
UAE squad: Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Ghulam Shabber, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed
Fourth-round clashes for British players
- Andy Murray (1) v Benoit Paire, Centre Court (not before 4pm)
- Johanna Konta (6) v Caroline Garcia (21), Court 1 (4pm)
box
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Letstango.com
Started: June 2013
Founder: Alex Tchablakian
Based: Dubai
Industry: e-commerce
Initial investment: Dh10 million
Investors: Self-funded
Total customers: 300,000 unique customers every month
The bio
Who inspires you?
I am in awe of the remarkable women in the Arab region, both big and small, pushing boundaries and becoming role models for generations. Emily Nasrallah was a writer, journalist, teacher and women’s rights activist
How do you relax?
Yoga relaxes me and helps me relieve tension, especially now when we’re practically chained to laptops and desks. I enjoy learning more about music and the history of famous music bands and genres.
What is favourite book?
The Perks of Being a Wallflower - I think I've read it more than 7 times
What is your favourite Arabic film?
Hala2 Lawen (Translation: Where Do We Go Now?) by Nadine Labaki
What is favourite English film?
Mamma Mia
Best piece of advice to someone looking for a career at Google?
If you’re interested in a career at Google, deep dive into the different career paths and pinpoint the space you want to join. When you know your space, you’re likely to identify the skills you need to develop.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Mia Man’s tips for fermentation
- Start with a simple recipe such as yogurt or sauerkraut
- Keep your hands and kitchen tools clean. Sanitize knives, cutting boards, tongs and storage jars with boiling water before you start.
- Mold is bad: the colour pink is a sign of mold. If yogurt turns pink as it ferments, you need to discard it and start again. For kraut, if you remove the top leaves and see any sign of mold, you should discard the batch.
- Always use clean, closed, airtight lids and containers such as mason jars when fermenting yogurt and kraut. Keep the lid closed to prevent insects and contaminants from getting in.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Need to know
Unlike other mobile wallets and payment apps, a unique feature of eWallet is that there is no need to have a bank account, credit or debit card to do digital payments.
Customers only need a valid Emirates ID and a working UAE mobile number to register for eWallet account.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
RESULTS
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 80,000 (Turf) 1,200m
Winner: AF Majalis, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer).
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 80,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Sawt Assalam, Szczepan Mazur, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami.
6pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 80,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Foah, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel.
6.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Faiza, Sandro Paiva, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
7pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 80,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: RB Dixie Honor, Antonio Fresu, Helal Al Alawi.
7.30pm: Rated Conditions (TB) Dh 100,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: Boerhan, Ryan Curatolo, Nicholas Bachalard.
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
LIVING IN...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
Under-21 European Championship Final
Germany 1 Spain 0
Weiser (40')
Name: Peter Dicce
Title: Assistant dean of students and director of athletics
Favourite sport: soccer
Favourite team: Bayern Munich
Favourite player: Franz Beckenbauer
Favourite activity in Abu Dhabi: scuba diving in the Northern Emirates
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAuthor%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESam%20Ottewill-Soulsby%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPrinceton%20University%20Press%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPages%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E392%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAvailable%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJuly%2011%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
Company%20profile
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About Seez
Company name/date started: Seez, set up in September 2015 and the app was released in August 2017
Founder/CEO name(s): Tarek Kabrit, co-founder and chief executive, and Andrew Kabrit, co-founder and chief operating officer
Based in: Dubai, with operations also in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon
Sector: Search engine for car buying, selling and leasing
Size: (employees/revenue): 11; undisclosed
Stage of funding: $1.8 million in seed funding; followed by another $1.5m bridge round - in the process of closing Series A
Investors: Wamda Capital, B&Y and Phoenician Funds
The biog
Favourite colour: Brown
Favourite Movie: Resident Evil
Hobbies: Painting, Cooking, Imitating Voices
Favourite food: Pizza
Trivia: Was the voice of three characters in the Emirati animation, Shaabiyat Al Cartoon
if you go
The flights
Fly direct to Kutaisi with Flydubai from Dh925 return, including taxes. The flight takes 3.5 hours. From there, Svaneti is a four-hour drive. The driving time from Tbilisi is eight hours.
The trip
The cost of the Svaneti trip is US$2,000 (Dh7,345) for 10 days, including food, guiding, accommodation and transfers from and to Tbilisi or Kutaisi. This summer the TCT is also offering a 5-day hike in Armenia for $1,200 (Dh4,407) per person. For further information, visit www.transcaucasiantrail.org/en/hike/
Day 2, Abu Dhabi Test: At a glance
Moment of the day Dinesh Chandimal has inherited a challenging job, after being made Sri Lanka’s Test captain. He responded in perfect fashion, with an easy-natured century against Pakistan. He brought up three figures with a majestic cover drive, which he just stood and admired.
Stat of the day – 33 It took 33 balls for Dilruwan Perera to get off the mark. His time on zero was eventful enough. The Sri Lankan No 7 was given out LBW twice, but managed to have both decisions overturned on review. The TV replays showed both times that he had inside edged the ball onto his pad.
The verdict In the two previous times these two sides have met in Abu Dhabi, the Tests have been drawn. The docile nature of proceedings so far makes that the likely outcome again this time, but both sides will be harbouring thoughts that they can force their way into a winning position.
BlacKkKlansman
Director: Spike Lee
Starring: John David Washington; Adam Driver
Five stars
MATCH INFO
Liverpool 4 (Salah (pen 4, 33', & pen 88', Van Dijk (20')
Leeds United 3 (Harrison 12', Bamford 30', Klich 66')
Man of the match Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
Fitness problems in men's tennis
Andy Murray - hip
Novak Djokovic - elbow
Roger Federer - back
Stan Wawrinka - knee
Kei Nishikori - wrist
Marin Cilic - adductor
