Elias's airship idea takes off in Skellefteå

A five-meter-long airship, a flight time of several days, and an idea to change the way we inspect power grids and other infrastructure.

For physics student Elias Lingensjö, 24, a summer grant from the Sammes Foundation has provided the opportunity to take the leap from university theory to testing whether his own idea can actually take flight.

After three years of equations, thermodynamics, and fluid mechanics, Elias Lingensjö now has the chance to put his knowledge to real-world use.

Skellefteå has been the perfect base for taking his ideas further. As a student, you naturally want to apply what you’re learning. But developing your own idea requires both time and money—and as a student, you don’t have much of either. “That’s why it’s incredibly exciting that the Samme Foundation is willing to invest and take a risk so that I can work on my ideas this early in my education,” he says.

The 40,000-krona grant gave him the time to devote himself wholeheartedly to the project this summer.

Elias grew up in Härjedalen, attended the technology program at the high school in Härnösand, and is currently studying to become a civil engineer in engineering physics at Umeå University.

The first three years of the program have been intense and largely theoretical.

“I’ve been studying all along with the goal of soon being able to make more of my own choices and focus on what I really want to do—and that’s where I am now. It’s been incredibly rewarding.”

 An Opportunity to Grow in Skellefteå

Although Elias is studying in Umeå, it was Skellefteå that gave him the opportunity to start applying his knowledge to his own idea.

Elias and his friend Henrik Berggren had been thinking about their airship project for quite some time and looking for an opportunity to actually spend time investigating whether the idea could work.

The scholarship provided that opportunity, and Elias was the one who received it.

I’d love to contribute to development in northern Sweden—it’s something I’m passionate about. At the same time, I saw that there are excellent conditions here in Skellefteå, not least with Droneport and the infrastructure and expertise available here. Skellefteå felt like the obvious place to take the idea further, he says.

His knowledge in areas such as fluid mechanics and thermodynamics has come in handy, while also giving him the opportunity to meet stakeholders who could benefit from the technology.

“It’s been really fun to actually apply the knowledge I’ve gained. It’s incredibly rewarding. This is exactly what I want to do.”

A drone that can stay airborne for days

The idea that brought Elias to Skellefteå grew out of a shared interest in drone technology. He and Henrik had been following the development of large airships for applications such as freight transport and began to wonder if the same principle could be applied in an entirely different way.

Instead of transporting heavy cargo, they wanted to explore the possibility of building a significantly smaller airship, equipped with the same type of technology as a drone.

“The idea is that you could have, for example, LiDAR technology and a camera and use it to inspect infrastructure. The difference from a regular drone is that it could have a flight time of several days.”

Over the summer, their work has primarily focused on determining whether the concept is feasible. Elias and Henrik have performed calculations regarding lift, weather conditions, and size, among other factors, while also exploring how the craft could be made simple enough to operate for, say, a small business or a municipality.

The first model they designed would be just over five meters long when inflated, but could be packed down to a significantly smaller size when not in use. Hydrogen provides the lift, while propulsion is electric.

“We’ve built a model that has flown, and it feels very exciting. The basic idea hasn’t been to design a finished product, but rather to investigate whether this is actually a viable path forward,” he says.

Next Step – Out into the Real World

The initial evaluation has now been completed. The next step is to meet with potential users and get their perspective on the concept and the needs the technology could address. Among other things, we’re in talks with Skellefteå Kraft and the forestry company SCA.

The hope is then to move from calculations to a larger prototype.

“The business community in Skellefteå feels like a perfect fit for the application we envision; we firmly believe in our project and think there’s a huge market for it in Norrland,” says Elias.

FACTS

Sammes Foundation’s Summer Scholarships

Each year, the Samme Foundation offers students the opportunity to develop their skills in their field of study during the summer through their own ideas or projects in collaboration with companies and organizations.

In 2026, 20 scholarships of 40,000 kronor will be awarded to students from Umeå, Stockholm, Lund, Gothenburg, Luleå, and Skellefteå. The projects span fields such as AI, industry, game development, and sustainable construction. In addition, one extra scholarship of 100,000 kronor will be awarded.

Campus Skellefteå

Campus Skellefteå brings together universities, vocational colleges, research, and the business community. It offers programs in fields such as gaming and IT, energy, industry, healthcare, and social sciences, with the option to study both on-campus and remotely.