October 10, 2016

Airborne lookout on shark patrol this summer

Blimp to hover over local beaches in safety trial. 

Look up in the sky! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No, it’s a new and innovative way of spotting sharks using a blimp.

The Aerial Inflatable Remote Shark Human Interaction Prevention blimp – or Project AIRSHIP for short – will be trialled during the summer holidays at Kiama’s Surf Beach.

The blimp is the brainchild of lifeguard and University of Wollongong (UOW) marine biology PhD student, Kye Adams.

The five-metre long blimp can withstand winds of up to 30 kilometres per hour, and sends live images via a camera fitted to the helium-filled airship to a lifeguard-monitored laptop on the beach.

Project AIRSHIP is flown at a height of 120 metres and will be placed about 100 meters from the shoreline, providing an overhead view and live video feed that will keep watch over swimmers, monitor water currents and keep an eye out for sharks.

The project is a joint partnership between UOW, the NSW Department of Primary Industries and Kiama Municipal Council.

Mr Adams believes the method can be very cost-effective and is cheaper to operate than other aerial shark patrols.

“The camera on Project AIRSHIP has a battery life of more than eight hours. That’s a lot of continuous video coverage compared to a manually operated aerial drone that can only operate between 20 minutes and two hours.”

Mr Adams said the inspiration for Project AIRSHIP came from watching old war movies.

“Blimps were used in surveillance exercises during the world wars, so as a lifeguard I thought a blimp would be a great idea to watch out for hazards to swimmers, such as sharks,” he said.

Another major benefit of the blimp is that it is mobile and can be easily moved to other coastal locations.

“If the blimp can improve safety to beach goers at a minimal cost then everyone wins.” Mr Adams said.