Editing Airship (section)

===Passenger transport===
[[File:Zeppelin NT im Flug.jpg|thumb|A [[Zeppelin NT]] airship]]
[[File:Yokoso! Japan.jpg|thumb|''Yokoso! Japan'' passenger airship at the [[Malmi Airport]] in [[Helsinki]], Finland]]
In the 1990s, the successor of the original Zeppelin company in [[Friedrichshafen]], the ''Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik GmbH'', reengaged in airship construction. The first experimental craft (later christened ''Friedrichshafen'') of the type "[[Zeppelin NT]]" flew in September 1997. Though larger than common blimps, the ''Neue Technologie'' (New Technology) zeppelins are much smaller than their giant ancestors and not actually Zeppelin-types in the classical sense. They are sophisticated semirigids. Apart from the greater payload, their main advantages compared to blimps are higher speed and excellent maneuverability. Meanwhile, several ''Zeppelin NT'' have been produced and operated profitably in joyrides, research flights and similar applications.

In June 2004, a Zeppelin NT was sold for the first time to a Japanese company, Nippon Airship Corporation, for tourism and advertising mainly around Tokyo. It was also given a role at the [[Expo 2005|2005 Expo]] in [[Aichi]]. The aircraft began a flight from Friedrichshafen to Japan, stopping at [[Geneva]], Paris, [[Rotterdam]], [[Munich]], Berlin, [[Stockholm]] and other European cities to carry passengers on short legs of the flight. Russian authorities denied overflight permission, so the airship had to be dismantled and shipped to Japan rather than following the historic [[LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin#Round-the-world flight (1929)|''Graf Zeppelin'' flight from Germany to Japan]].

In 2008, [[Airship Ventures|Airship Ventures Inc.]] began operations from [[Moffett Federal Airfield]] near [[Mountain View, California]] and until November 2012 offered tours of the [[San Francisco Bay Area]] for up to 12 passengers.