First glimpses of the Ron Paul blimp

[archerships]

First video of the Ron Paul blimp!

They think that they'll get a lot of reporters who want to fly in the blimp:

After a short interview on XMRadio just now they called back and asked if they could be on the blimp when it goes over Washington D.C. Other reporters have asked for the same.

They're also pretty confident that they'll be able to fly it over Wall Street, Times Square, and other restricted airspaces. Seeing the blimp over Times Square on New Years Eve would be awesome.

Note that they need to raise $200 K by Friday in order to make stops on the way from Elizabeth City, NC to Boston, MA. At the current donation rate, they will still make it to Boston by the 16th, but won't have time to make any stops.

Comments

[girlvinyl.livejournal.com]

What is the deal here? Do they need more money? Will it actually fly for sure? Or is it still in the funding stages? Also, is it better to donate to this or to wait until tea party day and donate to RP campaign directly. I have a little bit of funds, so I want to make sure I donate it the right way.

[crasch.livejournal.com]

The blimp company needs $200 K before they will actually put the blimp into the air. At the current donation rate (about $24 K/day), they will raise the money in time to make the 16th rally in Boston, but won't be able to make any stops along the way (the blimp is currently in Elizabeth City, NC). If they can raise $200 K by midnight tomorrow, they will be able to fly over Wall Street and Washington, D.C. on their way to Boston. See the flight plan here:

http://www.ronpaulblimp.com/FlightPlan.php

They will need another $150 K to keep the blimp in the air for a month, long enough to fly around New Hampshire prior to the primary. I'm not sure how much flight time $200 K buys us.

In my opinion, the blimp project provides more bang for the dollar than any other project. I think reporters would love to ride in the blimp, and camera guys will love to shoot it. So I think it will get many millions of dollars worth of coverage for the campaign.

The blimp's $350 K cost is a fairly small fraction of the total amount expected on the 16th, so I don't think it will significantly detract from the impact of the 16th fund raiser. So, if the blimp project appeals to you, I would recommend donating to it, instead of the 16th fund raiser.

[crasch.livejournal.com]

Helium, my man, helium.

[greendalek.livejournal.com]

They just hit $200K. Looks like it's a go!

(I am just cynical enough to expect a last-minute injunction by the FAA because the flight plan supposedly violates some just-suddenly-remembered ordinance or another.)