[Benclaman]

The goal is to make them completely autonomous, though a pilot observer will likely be required for the near future.

Business model is something we're still figuring out. We have interest on both sides, but at first we'll definitely be operating themselves as the 'FedEx of the low skies.' Once the airship is certified (1-3 years after we build it), we can sell them.

[fernly]

On-board pilot/observer? Or remote, like a military drone operator?

If you build the infrastructure for the latter, one operator could likely manage multiple craft.

That said, what does either type of pilot do, if the vehicle misbehaves? What's the abort protocol, esp. over populated areas? Given a 600-lb payload, self-destruct is not an appealing way to exit.

[Benclaman]

Remote pilot like a military drone operator! If a vehicle misbehaves, worst case scenario would be a total control failure (will definitely have redundancies designed in), which would result in the airship slowly falling to the ground. Hopefully, people would see it coming and be able to get out of the way!