http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2017/05/24/worlds-largest-aircraft-completes-successful-test-flight.htmlSo I guess the only question left is, "O.K. we know it works, now what is it used for!?!" How about target practice for bored, malingering jihadists with shoulder-held surface-to-air missiles and nothing else to shoot at? Being the length of a (NFL) football field, the Airlander makes a fairly easy target. That's one reason why one probably won't see such a craft deployed in any forward position but rather, only in situations where there is no immediate threat of armed defenses to shoot at it, similar to how helicopters and C5A transports are used.
The craft is so big that it could conceivably carry a good deal of material or troops across country from a forward airbase (such as tanks/light artillery or soldiers with mobile combat vehicles) into strategic positions with more stealth and efficiency than helicopters or drops from cargo planes.
Of course, finding a large enough clear space to serve as a landing site for the craft might be challenging - especially for the next generation of Airlander, which will be much bigger than this one, so maybe this would be another good use for a MOAB.
