The storied Hybrid Air Vehicle (HAV) Airlander 10, affectionately known as “the flying butt,” seems to have run into another snag after a famously heavy landing last year caused significant damage to the aircraft. This time around, the aircraft broke free of its mooring, triggering a safety system that ripped open the aircraft’s hull, causing minor injuries to two people on the ground.
HAV said in a statement: “The aircraft has a safety system, which operates automatically in circumstances of the aircraft breaking free of its mast, and is designed to rip open the hull and deflate the aircraft.” The safety feature ensured that, “our aircraft minimizes any potential damage to its surroundings in these circumstances,” HAV added.
This isn’t the first time the iconic aircraft has made headlines for unplanned occurrences during test flights, but HAV insisted that it was testing a brand-new type of aircraft and that, as a result, “incidents of this nature can occur during this phase of development.”
Earlier this year, Air Cargo World discussed the Airlander 10’s rocky start with Chris Daniels, head of communications and partnerships at Hybrid Air Vehicles. Daniels stressed that there was a broader lesson to be learned from the Bedfordshire incidents.
“There’s an awful lot of people talking about doing things, rather than conducting tests and learning from mistakes. The logistics industry needs to have patience,” he explained. “We’re going to get there, but it takes time.”