导读:世界上最大的飞行器“飞天屁股”在第二次试飞结束准备返航的途中，不小心撞上电线杆意外坠机，所幸无人员伤亡。
The world’s largest aircraft crash landed at the end of its second test flight on Wednesday.
周三，全球最大飞行器在第二次试飞时发生坠机意外。
The 300-feet long Airlander 10 nosedived on its return to an airfield north of London after spending more than an hour and half in the air.
Airlander 10是个长约300英尺，在结束超过一个半小时的空中试飞，返回位于英国北部的机场途中发生意外，被迫急降。
The Airlander experienced a heavy landing and the front of the flight deck has sustained some damage which is currently being assessed, Hybrid Air Vehicles, the British company behind the aircraft, said in a statement.
飞艇制造商英国混能航空交通公司在声明中提到“飞艇发生了重着陆，机头的飞机驾驶台也有一定损害，受损程度目前正在测算中”
The company did not explain what caused the crash but said all planned tasks were completed during the flight. The pilots were unhurt, it added.
飞艇制造商并未解释坠机的原因但表示此次试飞完成了所有计划任务，并补充说所有的机组人员都安全无恙。
The U.K. government’s Air Accident Investigation Branch has begun an investigation, a spokesperson said.
一名发言人表示英国航空事故调查局已经对此展开调查。
Part airship, part helicopter, part plane, the aircraft is about 50 feet longer than the biggest passenger plane.
该款飞行器比目前最大的客机还要长50英尺，是飞艇和直升机以及一般客机的综合体。
Airlander completed its maiden test flight just last week. But that was not without incident either.
上周Airlander刚刚成功完成自己的处女飞。但是成功不代表没有小波折。
The flight was postponed for three days due to a technical problem, and then when Airlander took off -- after hours of delay -- it only stayed in the air for 20 minutes instead of the 90 minutes originally planned.
首飞因为技术问题延迟了三天，，问题解决终于起飞后（这也是延迟数小时后的事），这个大家伙只在空中停留了20分钟远远少于计划的90分钟。
Airlander has four engines and no internal structure. It maintains its shape thanks to the pressure of the 38,000 cubic meters of helium inside its hull, which is made from ultralight carbon fiber.
Airlander配备了四个引擎，没有内部结构。机体是由超轻碳纤维材料制成的，里面充有38000立方米的氦气，其压力的作用使得舱体得以保持它的形态。
Together with the aerodynamic shape of its hull, the lighter-than-air helium gas provides most of the lift. The aircraft’s odd shape has led some observers to describe it as a "flying bum."
机体的外形充分应用了空气动力学，大部分升力来源于比空气轻的氦气。飞机奇怪的外形让一些观察者将它描述成“飞天屁股”。
The aircraft was originally designed for U.S. military surveillance. But the project was grounded in 2013 because of defense spending cuts.
这架飞机的设计初衷是为了美国军事侦察，但是由于国防开支的削减，这个项目在2013年被搁置。
Hybrid Air Vehicles then managed to raise over 3.4 million pounds ($4.4 million) through two crowd funding campaigns. It also received a grant from the European Union and funding from the U.K. government.
之后，飞艇制造商英国混能航空交通公司HAV通过两次众筹活动，成功筹集到超过340万英镑(也就是440万美元)的资金，并同时收到了欧盟的拨款和英国政府的资金。
Airlander is designed to stay airborne for up to five days at a time if manned, and for more than two weeks if unmanned. It should be able to carry up to 10 tons of cargo at a maximum speed of 91 miles per hour.
“飞天屁股”在载人时单次最大飞行时间可达5天，无人时可以超过两周。携带10吨货物时，它的最大时速可达91英里。
