An assessment of the potential use of modern airships in humanitarian logistics
Date
2022
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Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
Humanitarian logistics delivers humanitarian aid to victims of conflict, man-made hazards and natural disasters. Operations are often constrained by limited resources, difficult operating environments, and the pressing time-sensitive needs of a population that has been impacted by a disaster. A key element of humanitarian logistics is selecting the mode of transportation used to deliver the aid. New modes of transportation with unique abilities could be significant assets for logistics. This dissertation focuses on modern cargo airships as a new mode of transportation for humanitarian logistics. The dissertation turns to the theory of diffusion of innovation to assess if airships could be used in humanitarian logistics, and how widely their use in humanitarian logistics might spread. Information about airships and about humanitarian logistics was gathered from existing literature and from semi-structured interviews with humanitarian logistics professionals and members of the airship industry. Results suggest that cargo airships can adequately do the job of humanitarian logistics, and in some circumstances, particularly those where the infrastructure (roads, airports, etc.) of conventional modes of transportation is damaged or otherwise unavailable, airships may be the ideal choice. However, results also suggest that in many circumstances, logisticians would choose other modes of transportation over airships. An assessment based on the theory of diffusion of innovation suggests that while the innovation of using airships in humanitarian logistics will spread, it will do so slowly, and will never be the primary mode of transportation that humanitarian logistics relies on.
Description
Keywords
Airship, Cargo airship, Diffusion of innovation, Humanitarian logistics