The free-flying aerial logging vehicle is an attractive alternative to conventional cable logging systems on steep slopes, because it requires fewer roads and landings, permits shorter operational lead times and reduces environmental impacts. Helicopter are being used to log high value timber, but high operating costs and limited payloads often offset the advantages. Heavy-lift airships, combining both static (helium) lift and aerodynamic lift, may offer a lower-cost alternative. Much of the world's remaining high quality timber is on areas too inaccessible for too environmentally sensitive for economical logging by current methods. The cyclocrane and other heavy-lift airship developments show promise for overcoming these obstacles.
