U.S. Army unveils solar powered communication blimp

We’ve seen quite a few unmanned solar-powered aerial vehicles before. The U.S. Army has just unveiled yet another one with Lockheed Martin. Called the High Altitude Long Endurance-Demonstrator, this solar-powered sky cruiser reached an altitude of approximately 32,000 feet on its trial run and is somewhat reminiscent of a blimp. However, the sculptors of this beauty look forward to having it go up to 60,000 feet. The HALE-D is designed to help with communications in remote areas like Afghanistan, where the terrain is simply too rough to carry communication equipment by land.

A solar-powered aerial-air support system of sorts, this could prove to be an added boon for the US. Army!
[OttawaCitizen]