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Has the Oasis of the Seas Test Blimp Vanished?

[Update: CruiseCritic has just Twittered that the blimp has been located. Phew!]

According to CruiseCritic.com, who translated a Finnish news report, the test blimp attached to the new cruise ship Oasis of the Seas has gone missing.

The blimp, called the Aerostat was launched earlier this week for testing as a new adventure amenity aboard the cruise ship which is also in its own sea testing trials. For passengers who are tired of walking around and around the ship, the Aerostat would enable them to get off the boat for a little while. The blimp would rise about 165 feet high in the sky but would still be tethered to the ship.

Except somewhere in testing that rope has snapped off.

The 220,000-ton, 5,400-passenger Oasis of the Seas is scheduled to return to the STX Europe Finland shipyard in Turku today, but the current whereabouts of the blimp are still unconfirmed. No one was onboard the object, which was being tested for use as a balloon ride onboard the largest cruise ship ever built.

And this is exactly what we would keep us from riding a cruise ship's baby blimp. Meanwhile, the blimp is still out there. We hope Royal Caribbean can find it soon.

Related Stories:
· Would You Ride In A Cruise Ship's Baby Blimp? [Jaunted]
· Update: Oasis of the Seas' Missing Blimp [CruiseCritic.com]

[Photo: CruiseCritic]