Next-generation airships

Engine mechanic Gerardo Esparza works on one of the three engines that will propel the new airship.  (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

Craftsmen assemble the aft portion of Worldwide Aeros’ blimp-like airship under construction in a World War II-era blimp hanger in Tustin.  (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

The cockpit sits on the floor next to the partially assembled airship. It will be be installed beneath the craft.  (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

Fredy Zuniga trims a piece of the airship’s aft section framework. “Because of the curves, every single piece has to be custom cut and fitted,” Zuniga says.  (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

Worldwide Aeros’ Aeroscraft being built in Tustin is a zeppelin with a rigid skeleton made of aluminum and carbon fiber. A new type of “hybrid” aircraft that combines airplane and airship technologies, it doesn’t need a long runway to take off or land because it has piston engines that allow it to move vertically and a new high-tech buoyancy control system.  (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

The Aeroscraft is being built under a contract of around $35 million from the Pentagon and NASA. That’s a tall order for Worldwide Aeros, a company of about 100 employees.  (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)