The world's largest aircraft, known fondly as the 'Flying Bum', left its hangar for the first time today.
The Airlander 10, which cost £25million to build over 10 years, is 302 feet (92 metres) long and pumped with a million cubic feet of helium.
The part-plane, part-airship left its hangar in Cardington, Bedfordshire at 4am today to commence a brief series of ground systems tests before its first flight later this month.
World's largest aircraft leaves its hangar for the first time: Pictures show the amazing scale of the 92m-long so-called 'bum plane'
The 302-feet-long craft was originally developed as part of a US Army project which was then abandoned in 2012
A British company has converted the aircraft - a cross between an airship and an aeroplane - for civilian use
It will fly to 4,000 feet at speeds of up to 46 mph in a series of six test flights above Cardington, Bedfordshire
The 'Flying Bum' can carry 48 passengers and is designed to be flown by remote control for up to three weeks
By Chris Summers For Mailonline
6 August 2016
The world's largest aircraft, known fondly as the 'Flying Bum', left its hangar for the first time today.
The Airlander 10, which cost £25million to build over 10 years, is 302 feet (92 metres) long and pumped with a million cubic feet of helium.
The part-plane, part-airship left its hangar in Cardington, Bedfordshire at 4am today to commence a brief series of ground systems tests before its first flight later this month.
The world's largest aircraft makes its first journey at 4am today. Originally known as the Airlander 10, it was christened Martha Gwyn in March, in honour of the wife of the company's chairman
As dawn breaks the sheer size of Martha Gwyn can be seen from beyond the perimeter of the airfield at Cardington
It was a delicate operation as there was only a 19ft clearance from the fin tip to the sides of the hangar doors
It was a delicate operation as there was only a 19ft (six metre) clearance from the fin tip to the sides of the hangar doors.
It took around five minutes for the Airlander to clear the hangar and then a further 30 minutes to be towed to rest at the primary mast site.
The aircraft which, at 302ft long, is around 50ft larger than the biggest passenger jets, was first developed by British company Hybrid Air Vehicles Ltd for the US government as a long-endurance surveillance aircraft but it fell foul of defence cutbacks.
The Airlander 10 is fondly nicknamed the 'Flying Bum'. From this image, it is not hard to see where it got the moniker
Airlander has now formally been granted permission to conduct its first series of flight tests by both European Aviation Safety Agency and the UK Civil Aviation Authority.
The project's technical director, Mike Durham, said: 'Last week we successfully completed our final in-hangar all engines, all generators, all systems testing.
'My thanks to the whole business for getting us here. The entire team is looking forward to the final series of tests outside before taking to the skies for the first time.
The Airlander 10, which cost £25million to build, is 92 metres long and pumped with a million cubic feet of helium
'It was a very smooth first journey for Airlander and she behaved beautifully. We're delighted to have reached this significant milestone.'
A number of tests still need to be conducted on the Airlander 10, christened the Martha Gwyn in April after the wife of Hybrid Air Vehicles chairman Philip Gwyn, but then the flight test program can start.
The aircraft is designed to stay airborne for up to five days at a time to fulfil a wide range of communication and survey roles, as well as carrying cargo and tourist passenger flights.
From a distance it looks similar to Thunderbird 2, the giant air transporter from the 1960s TV series
The Airlander 10, which cost £25million to build over 10 years, is 302 feet (92 metres) long and pumped with a million cubic feet of helium.
The part-plane, part-airship left its hangar in Cardington, Bedfordshire at 4am today to commence a brief series of ground systems tests before its first flight later this month.
World's largest aircraft leaves its hangar for the first time: Pictures show the amazing scale of the 92m-long so-called 'bum plane'
The 302-feet-long craft was originally developed as part of a US Army project which was then abandoned in 2012
A British company has converted the aircraft - a cross between an airship and an aeroplane - for civilian use
It will fly to 4,000 feet at speeds of up to 46 mph in a series of six test flights above Cardington, Bedfordshire
The 'Flying Bum' can carry 48 passengers and is designed to be flown by remote control for up to three weeks
By Chris Summers For Mailonline
6 August 2016
The world's largest aircraft, known fondly as the 'Flying Bum', left its hangar for the first time today.
The Airlander 10, which cost £25million to build over 10 years, is 302 feet (92 metres) long and pumped with a million cubic feet of helium.
The part-plane, part-airship left its hangar in Cardington, Bedfordshire at 4am today to commence a brief series of ground systems tests before its first flight later this month.
The world's largest aircraft makes its first journey at 4am today. Originally known as the Airlander 10, it was christened Martha Gwyn in March, in honour of the wife of the company's chairman
As dawn breaks the sheer size of Martha Gwyn can be seen from beyond the perimeter of the airfield at Cardington
It was a delicate operation as there was only a 19ft clearance from the fin tip to the sides of the hangar doors
It was a delicate operation as there was only a 19ft (six metre) clearance from the fin tip to the sides of the hangar doors.
It took around five minutes for the Airlander to clear the hangar and then a further 30 minutes to be towed to rest at the primary mast site.
The aircraft which, at 302ft long, is around 50ft larger than the biggest passenger jets, was first developed by British company Hybrid Air Vehicles Ltd for the US government as a long-endurance surveillance aircraft but it fell foul of defence cutbacks.
The Airlander 10 is fondly nicknamed the 'Flying Bum'. From this image, it is not hard to see where it got the moniker
Airlander has now formally been granted permission to conduct its first series of flight tests by both European Aviation Safety Agency and the UK Civil Aviation Authority.
The project's technical director, Mike Durham, said: 'Last week we successfully completed our final in-hangar all engines, all generators, all systems testing.
'My thanks to the whole business for getting us here. The entire team is looking forward to the final series of tests outside before taking to the skies for the first time.
The Airlander 10, which cost £25million to build, is 92 metres long and pumped with a million cubic feet of helium
'It was a very smooth first journey for Airlander and she behaved beautifully. We're delighted to have reached this significant milestone.'
A number of tests still need to be conducted on the Airlander 10, christened the Martha Gwyn in April after the wife of Hybrid Air Vehicles chairman Philip Gwyn, but then the flight test program can start.
The aircraft is designed to stay airborne for up to five days at a time to fulfil a wide range of communication and survey roles, as well as carrying cargo and tourist passenger flights.
From a distance it looks similar to Thunderbird 2, the giant air transporter from the 1960s TV series
