Airships were one of the first crafts built to bring humankind up into the clouds and now Airpusher’s Steampunk Airship is bringing the experience to Burning Man with a new twist.

Airpusher’s Steampunk Airship is a place for you to dance, laugh, stargaze, and get a breath of fresh air underneath the illuminated balloons of a classic airship. The Airpusher art car presents a new haven for DJs, musicians, and performance artists alike to showcase their talent on the playa with unique visual effects and a club grade sound system.

The Ship - Complete with 10,000 LEDs!

Airpusher is Burning Man made and a true labor of love for our group of Bay Area DJs, performers, and incredible support crew. Our unique car is being crafted by members of the community looking to heighten the boundaries of aural sensation and visual delight for everyone who sees us floating through the playa. Take flight with us and help us bring this amazing celebration of sound, light, and air to life!

From Dream To Reality

Meet Airpusher, a 40 foot long, visually stunning, double ballooned airship illuminated by more than 10,000 programmable LED lights. Passengers will dance and enjoy the view on the main platform with balloons suspended above and DJs rocking the airship from the platform below. The Airpusher is based on a CalTrans Engineers' truck with a steel frame that supports the main platform.  We’ll include a suspension system for aerialists to perform on either side of the ship. At night, a visual projection system will turn the desert floor into a performance space for aerialists, fire dancers, and anyone who wants to dance under the stars. In the heat of the day, the Airpusher brings relief with large fans providing air and a gentle misting system, like dancing through a cloud.

*Huge thank you to Jonathan Peedin for this first piece of concept art below - more to come for the perks! http://jonathanpeedin.com/

The Passenger Experience

2013 Cargo Culters will climb abord our massive machine and experience a second-level skyview like no other. You'll feel like you’re riding in the clouds on our replica of a steampunk airship!

Passengers and guests on the ground will be able to feel the musical experience produced by veteran DJs or live bands and the amazing sound system the car has on board. While the visual experience will be stunning at night, the Airpusher also provides entertainment and relief from the heat of the day by our industrial fans and misting system mounted on the back of the car.

Day or night, Airpusher provides an entertaining and unique experience for everyone on board or on the ground because we bring the entire party with us! We've partnered with Groove Hoops (professional hula hoop entertainers in New York) and Madamn Burnz (professional aerialists bsed in San Francisco) who will provide performers for as many of our shifts as they can. When we drop down to dance, we'll have dazzling entertainers to bring even more fun.

All burners are welcome to join us and party with Airpusher! You'll spot our 40 ft baloon soaring 20 ft above the playa from a mile off, so join us for a ride.

*Thanks in advance to Madamn Burnz http://www.rawartists.org/madamnburnz and Groove Hoops www.groovehoops.com for agreeing to join us on playa! And a giant thanks to Emily Martiny who created our amazing video! (Contact her at emilymartiny@gmail.com.)

Partner Camps

So, you already have a camp but no art car? Airpusher’s got you covered. We're welcoming other camps and performers to join us as we soar accross the playa.  As a special thank you for our largest donation, we’ll schedule a day and time to come to your camp, pick up 30 of your closest friends, and take you on a 4 hour playa tour complete with DJ and conductor. We’ll even program our lighting system so your camp’s name is illuminated on the ship!  Chose the "Partner Camp" perk to become one of Airpusher's partner camps.

What we have now:

We've got a great base to start from:

• We have the truck - an ex CaltTrans Engineers' vehicle.  Its already been to the Playa, so we know it'll work 
• We have the steel platform, an OSHA approved ladder to get to the second level, and sound system
• We have an amazing Crew that includes Bay Area DJs, electrical engineers, mechanical and structural engineers, concept artists, camp organizers and a dedicated support crew. In total there'll be 50 of us on the Playa, helping make Airpusher's Steam Punk Airship happen
• Outside of this campaign, in the last 30 days we've raised more than $7,500 from the Airpusher crew members alone

What we are asking for:

We have broken our needs into 3 phases.  We've already raised funds for Phase 1, this campaign is all about Phase 2:

• Phase 1: $7,500 - Maintenance, Storage, and Legalities --> Raised from Crew

• Phase 2: $9,500 -  Airship Transformation  --> This campaign
• Blimp: $2000
• Cloud around hull: $1500
• Rent: $1000 (May 1 through Oct 1)
• Generator renter for playa: $1000
• Ladder: $500
• DJ structure: $500
• Lighting: $500
• Ship Hull: $500
• Arms (for aerialists): $500
• Fans: $500
• All the lIttle design details: $500
• Gas: $150
• Generator Rack: $100

• Phase 3: $5,000 - Special Touches for an extra special airship --> If we exceed our goals

You can make this happen! 

Thanks for your support, we couldn't do it without you.