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This paper looks into with the aerodynamic properties and stability of the feeder airship in the framework of MAAT project. FP7 MAAT project is based on the concept of two different types of airships (the cruiser and the feeder) working together as a transportation system. The feeder considered in this paper is a rigid airship with an unconventional envelope shape. Aerodynamic forces and moments acting on the airship during the horizontal and vertical flight modes are of special interest in this study, because the aerodynamic performance of the aircraft directly influences its general dynamic behavior and, thus, its in-flight stability. A set of CFD simulations was conducted for vertical and horizontal flights of the feeder airship. Drag and lift forces and pitching moment together with their coefficients, were obtained for different altitudes and velocities from the proposed operational ranges of the airship.

This paper is dedicated to the study and improvement of the aerodynamic properties of the feeder airship in the context of MAAT project. FP7 MAAT project is based on the concept of two different types of airships (the cruiser and the feeder) working together as a transportation system. The current feeder concept includes unconventional shape changing envelope. Two problems are considered in this paper. The first problem is to find a condition of the effective vertical ascent for the feeder (from the ground to the altitude of the cruiser). A series of CFD simulations were carried out for the top flow for a range of altitudes from 0 to 16 km and velocities between 2 and 10 m/s. The results confirm the appearance of some negative effects, including high drag during the vertical ascent, especially, at low altitudes. The second problem is to study and reduce the side wind effects on the ascending feeder airship.