IEEE Spectrum is reporting the FAA has issued a special airworthiness certificate to allow Google founder Sergey Brin's LTA Research to flight test a 400-foot-long hybrid-electric airship, Pathfinder 1, at Moffett Field near San Francisco. LTA has been building the massive aircraft, the largest since the Hindenburg, since 2015. A second larger airship, which is almost 600 feet long, is also under construction. When he started the company, Brin said the plan was to use the airships for humanitarian aid to remote areas.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://www.avweb.com/aviation-news/sergei-brins-new-airship-cleared-for-flight-testing