Bob Jones has a lofty idea for improving communications around the world: Strategically float robotic airships above Earth as an alternative to unsightly telecom towers on the ground and expensive satellites in space. Jones, a former NASA manager, envisions a fleet of unmanned “Stratellites” hovering in the atmosphere and blanketing large swaths of territory with wireless access for high-speed data and voice communications. The idea of using airships as communications platforms isn’t new–it was widely floated during the dot-com boom. It didn’t really fly then, and Jones is the first to admit the latest venture is a gamble.