Establishing wireless communications services via high-altitude aeronautical platforms: a concept whose time has come?

The focus of this article is high altitude aeronautical platforms (HAAPs) such as airships, planes, helicopters, or some hybrid salutions which could operate at stratospheric altitudes for significant periods of time, be low-cost, and be capable of carrying sizable, multipurpose communications payloads. Of particular interest are ways to implement cellular/PCS or high-speed data networks in airborne platforms. From a communications perspective, HAAPs would have many advantages over both their terrestrial and satellite counterparts. If HAAPs prove to be reasonably stable, reliable, and not too costly, they will offer considerable opportunities for wireless services provision, and the introduction of innovative communications concepts such as cell scanning and stratospheric radio relays.