| Industry | Aerospace |
|---|---|
| Founded | 20 September 2012  |
| Founder | Sébastien Bougon |
| Headquarters | , France |
| Revenue | 416,700 Euro (2019) |
| Website | fr |
Flying Whales is a French aeronautic start-up developing an airship designed to be an environmentally-friendly solution for transporting heavy loads, such as wood logs or specific gear like wind-turbine blades, without ground-based infrastructure. [1]
Founded in 2012 by Sébastien Bougon, this project was initially dedicated to wood exploitation in partnership with the French organization in charge of public forest management, the Office National des Forêts (ONF).
The French government and the regional government of Nouvelle-Aquitaine have invested €90 million in the company, which as of May 2024 had not produced a single airship. Originally announced for 2020, the company projects that the prototype will be ready in 2028. [2]
After the Canadian federal government blocked Quebec's participation in the project due to this partial Chinese ownership of the company, Flying Whales organized a buyout of Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC)'s 25% sake in September 2021. [3]
In July 2022, the company announced that it had raised 122 million euros to finalize the development of the LCA60T. Investors in this round include the Government of France via the French public investment bank Bpifrance, as part of the France 2030 program designed to revive the French industrial sector.The others investors are the Principality of Monaco with the Société Nationale de Financement, as well as Air Liquide's ALIAD venture capital fund, the Groupe ADP and Société Générale Assurances. [4]
Conceived as a means of transport to open up certain regions inaccessible by road, the LCA60T could be sized as the largest aircraft in activity, with 200 meters long and 50 meters high, according to its CEO Sébastien Bougon. [5]
An airship is a type of aerostat (lighter-than-air) aircraft that can navigate through the air flying under its own power. Aerostats use buoyancy from a lifting gas that is less dense than the surrounding air to achieve the lift needed to stay airborne.
Cargolux, legally Cargolux Airlines International S.A., is a flag carrier cargo airline of Luxembourg with its headquarters and hub at Luxembourg Airport. With a global network, it is among the largest scheduled all-cargo airlines in the world. Charter flights and third party maintenance are also operated. It has 85 offices in over 50 countries as of 2018, and operates a global trucking network to more than 250 destinations.
Hydro-Québec is a Canadian Crown corporation public utility headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. It manages the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity in Quebec, as well as the export of power to portions of the Northeast United States. More than 40 percent of Canada’s water resources are in Quebec and Hydro-Québec is the fourth largest hydropower producer in the world.
Private spaceflight refers to spaceflight activities undertaken by non-governmental entities, such as corporations, individuals, or non-profit organizations. This contrasts with public spaceflight, which is traditionally conducted by government agencies like NASA, ESA, or JAXA.
The Benguela Railway is a Cape gauge railway line that runs through Angola from west to east, being the largest and most important railway line in the country. It also connects to Tenke in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and to the Cape to Cairo Railway.
Route 138 is a major highway in the Canadian province of Quebec, following the entire north shore of the St. Lawrence River past Montreal to the temporary eastern terminus in Kegashka on the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The western terminus is in Elgin, at the border with New York State south-west of Montreal. Part of this highway is known as the Chemin du Roy, or King's Highway, which is one of the oldest highways in Canada.
Cargolifter AG was a German company founded in 1996 to offer logistical services through point-to point transport of heavy and outsized loads. This service was based on the development of a heavy lift airship, the CL160, a 550,000 m3 (19,000,000 cu ft) vessel designed to carry a 160 t payload. The airship was never built and the company went bankrupt in July 2002. Today, shareholder-founded CL CargoLifter GmbH & Co. KG company seeks to continue selling the lighter-than-air technology. CargoLifter and Russia’s Aerosmena are among those developing huge airships that can lift up to 600 tons of freight while hovering above the ground or sea.
Farman Aviation Works was a French aircraft company founded and run by the brothers Richard, Henri, and Maurice Farman. They designed and constructed aircraft and engines from 1908 until 1936; during the French nationalization and rationalization of its aeronautical industry, Farman's assets were assigned to the Société Nationale de Constructions Aéronautiques du Centre (SNCAC).
The Port of Montreal is a cruise and transshipment point. It is located on the St. Lawrence River in Montreal, Québec, Canada. The port operates as an international container port. It services Toronto, the rest of Central Canada, the Midwestern United States, and the Northeastern United States. Though found on the Saint Lawrence Seaway, it is some 1,600 miles (2,600 km) inland from the Atlantic Ocean and it is on the shortest direct route between the North American Midwest and Europe or the Mediterranean.
Luft-Fahrzeug-Gesellschaft, also referred to as LFG, was a German aircraft manufacturer during World War I. They are best known for their various "Roland" designs, notably the Roland C.II Walfisch (whale), Roland D.II haifisch (Shark) and Roland D.VI, although they also produced a number of airships and many experimental designs.
The Montreal Metro is a rubber-tired underground rapid transit system serving Greater Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The metro, operated by the Société de transport de Montréal (STM), was inaugurated on October 14, 1966, during the tenure of Mayor Jean Drapeau.
In 1961 China established a state-run maritime shipping company and subsequently signed shipping agreements with many countries, laying the foundation for developing the country's ocean transport. That organization developed into the present-day China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company (COSCO). The Chinese government also invested heavily in water transport infrastructure, constructing new ports and rebuilding and enlarging older facilities.
Aeros Corp is an American manufacturer of airships based in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1993 by the current CEO and chief engineer, Igor Pasternak, who was born in Soviet Kazakhstan, raised in Soviet Ukraine, and moved to the U.S. after the Soviet collapse to build airships there. It currently employs more than 100 workers.
Irving Whale is a Canadian barge that sank off the north coast of Prince Edward Island, while en route from Halifax, Nova Scotia to Bathurst, New Brunswick, with a cargo of Bunker C oil in a rich fishing area. It is "one of Canada's most notorious nautical disasters". The barge, owned by J.D. Irving Ltd., had carried oil for JDI from 1967 until it sank in 1970. She was refloated in 1996, re-fitted as a deck barge, re-activated, and renamed ATL 2701 in 2001 and renamed again in 2009, as Atlantic Sea Lion. Since the accident, she only transports dry cargo.
Dana TM4, previously known as TM4 Inc., is a joint-venture between Dana Corporation and government-owned public utility Hydro-Québec. Established in 1998, it is active in the development of electric vehicle motors and related power systems. After spinning-off from Hydro-Québec's research center to commercialize their electric powertrain technologies, TM4 encountered some success in the 2000s, participating in many short-lived OEM demonstration programs. Commercially, things began to take-off in the 2010s, especially after they diversified their product ranges to serve the commercial vehicle market. As of 2018, thousands of electric and hybrid vehicles were equipped with TM4 systems.
Airship Industries was a British manufacturers of modern non-rigid airships (blimps) active under that name from 1980 to 1990 and controlled for part of that time by Alan Bond. The first company, Aerospace Developments, was founded in 1970, and a successor, Hybrid Air Vehicles, remains active as of 2022. Airship Industries itself was active between 1980 and 1990.
The Hybrid Air Vehicles Airlander 10 is a hybrid airship designed and built by British manufacturer Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV). Comprising a helium airship with auxiliary wing and tail surfaces, it flies using both aerostatic and aerodynamic lift and is powered by four diesel engine-driven ducted propellers.
The MPM-10, commonly known as the Azur, is the third and newest generation of rubber-tired rolling stock used on the Montreal Metro in Canada, built by a consortium of Bombardier Transportation and Alstom. The first MPM-10 train entered into service on the Orange Line in February 2016, replacing the entire first-generation MR-63 fleet. 71 nine-car trains have been built, and are currently in service on the Orange and Green Lines.
Investissement Québec is a company established in 1998 under an act passed by the National Assembly of Quebec to favour investment in Quebec by Quebec-based and international companies. Its registered office is located in Quebec City. In December 2010 it took over the Société générale de financement.
Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) are systems that incorporate support for next-generation transport such as such as remotely piloted, autonomous, or vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft. This includes those powered by electric or hybrid-electric propulsion.
 | This French corporation or company article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |