Google, which is hoping to beam the internet to remote areas of the world via balloon, went before the UN's aviation agency to ask member states to let it ply their airspace. The company's X Lab, which was created to pursue big-vision projects, said it hopes to establish a network of helium balloons floating in the stratosphere that will emit a powerful 4G signal to rural and difficult-to-access areas.
The new initiative -- launched in 2013 and dubbed "Project Loon" -- saw its first balloon take off from South America in February only to crash at a tea plantation in Sri Lanka, where it was discovered by villagers. Alphabet, the parent company of Google, had partnered with Sri Lanka to bring the internet to remote areas there. The country's Information and Communication Technology Agency, which coordinated the tests with Google, described the landing as controlled and scheduled. In July, leading social network Facebook launched a similar attempt to bring internet access to remote areas via solar drones.
