In May 2025, #LTAResearch began flight testing its Pathfinder 1 airship at Moffett Field in Mountain View, California, marking the return of rigid airships after more than 80 years. The geodesic framework comprises nearly 10,000 hollow carbon fiber tubes connected by 3,000 precision-welded titanium hubs, creating the skeleton for what is currently the world’s largest flying aircraft.
Kilwell Fibrelab manufactured the tubes using a roll-wrapping process with Toray aerospace-grade carbon fiber prepreg, including both spread tow plain weave intermediate modulus and unidirectional high modulus materials. The two standardized tube configurations underwent a high-temperature cure cycle, and the manufacturing facility implemented a comprehensive data tracking system to meet aviation standards.
The CFRP tubes provide critical weight savings while delivering the compressive strength needed for the airship’s 13 mainframes. This material selection allows the rigid structure to support the propulsion, navigation and safety systems of the modern airship, validating the composite-intensive design approach for lighter-than-air vehicles.
Read more about the airship in CW’s “Next-generation airship design enabled by modern composites.” https://lnkd.in/eFERQUHA
source : #CompositesWorld
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