Purdy: There is, too, a local team in the Rose Bowl

Two for two?

Check out the San Jose Mercury News today.

Columnist Mark Purdy gives us a shout out as the "local team" in the upcoming Rose Bowl this Monday.

Mark had the chance to speak with Will Spivey, mechanic/inspector (and former defense for San Jose State Spartans), and Ben Travis, Pilot for the story.

As to who will end up on top - Wisconsin Badgers or Oregon Ducks - we shall soon know!

Will Spivey, mechanic/inspector for Airship Ventures, with a camera adaptor ring that is used when the zeppelin hovers over sporting events providing TV coverage. At Moffett Field in Mountain View Wednesday Dec. 21, 2011.
The crew that flies the zeppelin will be flying over the Rose Bowl game on January 2nd providing TV coverage.
(Photo by Patrick Tehan/Mercury News)

Morning Paper

A good way to start the day - a cup of coffee and Eureka on the front page of the paper. We are here in Long Beach thru the middle of next week offering passenger flights and to provide aerial tv coverage of the Rose Bowl.

Palos Verdes Lighthouse

Collapsed Section of Road

Coastal Batteries

Look closer at the hills for ww2 era coastal defense positions

Terminal Island

An intermediate level federal penitentiary near Long Beach.

Presenting on Flight Training and Simulation

Francis Govers, Airship Ventures Special Missions Manager presenting a session on LTA pilot training and flight simulation.

Roger Munk and George Spyrou

Alan Handley reading a tribute to Roger Munk and George Spyrou, airship pioneers gone west in 2010, to whom the conference has been dedicated.

Upper Platform L30

Zeppelin Tail Gunner

From a model of the great war airship L30.

Fokker D-VIII at Museum of Flight

Aachen Model Airship Regatta

The DGLR (Germany Society for Air and Space Travel) held an airship workshop in Aachen, Germany last month.

To coincide with the event, a group of European airship modelers held an "Airship Regatta" at the same time. Past events have taken place all over Germany, as well as in the UK and Italy.

If you would be interested in seeing a similar event take place in the United States, either to participate with a design, or as a spectator to watch the airships compete, let us know via a comment to the blog.

Airships to the Arctic

A Full House for Airships to the Arctic at the Edgewater Hotel

A number of us (Joanne, Francis and myself) are in attendance this week at the Airships to the Arctic conference in Seattle. Earlier today we presented our experiences and lessons learned during the "Farmers Airship Covering Communities" coast to coast tour this past summer. Tomorrow Francis (special missions manager) will be doing a presentation on airship flight simulators and our LTA pilot training program.

The conference is a gathering of airship operators, airship vendors, government agencies, and commercial customers looking at the challenges and opportunities of operating airships in the arctic, with a particular focus on Alaska and the northern territories of Canada.