In modern times, airships are used mainly for advertising, researching, or filming purposes, where their ability to say aloft for hours at a time and relative low cost gives them an edge over conventional aircraft.

There are currently airship designs for military applications. The United States military is pursuing an airship that could fly high above anti-aircraft fire where it would be safe to drop its payload or observe a battlefield.

Companies such as Lockheed Martin are developing airships that could fly in low earth orbit as an inexpensive alternative to satellites. These high-altitude-airships would orbit above the jet stream and a single platform would cover 384650 square miles of land and millions of cubic miles of airspace. It would fly at 65,000 feet with a payload of 4,000 pounds, and could stay aloft for one month. The project is expected to launch in 2007.

The UK based ATG (Advanced Technologies Group) has plans for a hybrid airship called the SkyCat™. Its airfoil shape would produce additional lift, allowing the airship to lift large loads at low costs. It could be used for lifting cargo, patrolling and surveillance operations, airborne early warning systems, mine counter measures, landmine counter measures, anti-submarine operations, as an arsenal ship, peacekeeping operations, humanitarian operations, as well as telecommunication purposes.