Originally Posted by
n5296s
I think I have a pretty decent rough idea.
Your answer would suggest not.
As a man who has spent more hours than I care to remember orbiting above patches of desert day after day, trust me when I say that Airlander,
if it works, has a hugely successful future ahead in military service.
Normal military aircraft are optimised for roles against countries that have some form of capability to fight back and require travel to get there. They do it well.
Against countries/people like the ones we have been fighting recently, and some we are still fighting today, they are a staggeringly expensive way of fighting a war. I'm not saying we don't still need the capability because they are absolutely critical, but offloading the hour intensive orbiting roles is hugely beneficial.
Reaper/Pred is an example of the need. They are in no way survivable against even an elementary air threat, but against ISIS etc they are perfect due to their endurance despite their slow speed.