07/08/2026
🔥 AERONOVA: key news from the latest webinar
Where will NOVA-2 now be assembled? When will we see its giant 44-metre envelope inflated? What is happening with NOVA-8 — and why might NOVA-60 eventually replace NOVA-35?
The latest AERONOVA webinar featured several updates that significantly change the current picture of the Next-Generation Airships project.
Here are the key points shared by Fyodor Konstantinov and Gennady Babanin — concise, clear and to the point.
🏗 The NOVA-2 assembly site has been selected
AERONOVA has officially moved from Voskresensk to Kirzhach.
The company has signed a lease for the required space. The NOVA-2 team has received the left half of a large aircraft hangar built for two Au-30 airships.
A special surface will be prepared there for gas filling and pressure-testing the envelope, after which assembly of the airship will begin.
NOVA-2 now has a place where its separate structures and systems can be assembled into a complete crewed airship.
🎈 The 44-metre envelope is nearly ready
The NOVA-2 envelope has a volume of 2 000 m³ and is around 44 metres long. About 98% of its elements have already been welded at the company's own production facility.
At the webinar, Fyodor Konstantinov said that production of the envelope was almost complete. The next step is pressure testing: the envelope will be filled with air, fitted with sensors, and checked for geometry and airtightness.
The plan for August is to see the NOVA-2 envelope inflated and under pressure for the first time.
📋 Preparations for future flight tests have begun
This may be one of the webinar's most significant updates.
A flight-test team must be formed for NOVA-2 and technical specialists trained. Work has already begun on operating documentation covering flight preparation, ex*****on and completion. All work and future flights must be recorded in the aircraft's technical log.
This marks a fundamentally new level. The team is preparing not only to complete NOVA-2, but to organise the full operation of a crewed aircraft.
🚀 The current status of NOVA-8 has been defined
Production of NOVA-8 has not yet begun, but its overall configuration is complete.
Its volumes, multi-section design, emergency protection system and engine arrangement have been defined. Detailed design of individual elements is now beginning.
NOVA-8 is being developed in a hybrid configuration: electric motors will provide thrust, while electricity will be generated on board. Production is planned to begin in 2027.
AERONOVA's production airship range is expected to begin with NOVA-8.
🛩 NOVA-60 may replace NOVA-35
According to the current engineering assessment, NOVA-35, with a payload capacity of 15 tonnes, could evolve into NOVA-60, capable of carrying 30 tonnes.
The difference in manufacturing complexity and required resources is estimated at around 10%. A higher-capacity model may therefore be the more logical choice when moving to a large rigid airship.
🤝 What this means for the project
NOVA-2 now has an assembly site. Its envelope is nearly ready. The team is preparing for pressure testing, setting up the flight-test structure and developing documentation, while a future production range is already taking shape beyond the first crewed airship.
All this is being created with the support of the investors — co-owners of the project who believed in the revival of airship construction.
Today, this idea is taking real shape. The next major step will be taken in Kirzhach.
