Launch HN: Buoyant (YC S21) – Blimp drones for air freight

Re:Launch HN: Buoyant (YC S21) – Blimp drones for air freight by Mizza on Monday August 23, 2021 @02:13PM (#28279809)

Nifty! Simple, exciting and aesthetically pleasing idea. I've known people from Alaska who have to get their supplies flown in, so it's cool you're covering that use case from the start - although apparently that whole service economy is really driven by the smuggling of alcohol, as many towns there are "dry". You may be stepping on some toes if you muscle into this territory.

How does piloting work? Is the goal to make these things completely autonomous, or will there be a remote pilot at all times?

What's the business model? Can I buy one of your blimps, or are you going to become FedEx of the low skies?

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Re:Launch HN: Buoyant (YC S21) – Blimp drones for air freight by Benclaman on Monday August 23, 2021 @02:28PM (#28279995)

The goal is to make them completely autonomous, though a pilot observer will likely be required for the near future.

Business model is something we're still figuring out. We have interest on both sides, but at first we'll definitely be operating themselves as the 'FedEx of the low skies.' Once the airship is certified (1-3 years after we build it), we can sell them.

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Re:Launch HN: Buoyant (YC S21) – Blimp drones for air freight by fernly on Monday August 23, 2021 @06:19PM (#28282736)

On-board pilot/observer? Or remote, like a military drone operator?

If you build the infrastructure for the latter, one operator could likely manage multiple craft.

That said, what does either type of pilot do, if the vehicle misbehaves? What's the abort protocol, esp. over populated areas? Given a 600-lb payload, self-destruct is not an appealing way to exit.

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Re:Launch HN: Buoyant (YC S21) – Blimp drones for air freight by Benclaman on Monday August 23, 2021 @11:26PM (#28284779)

Remote pilot like a military drone operator! If a vehicle misbehaves, worst case scenario would be a total control failure (will definitely have redundancies designed in), which would result in the airship slowly falling to the ground. Hopefully, people would see it coming and be able to get out of the way!

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