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Aviation History
1931
1931 - 0876.PDF
FLIGHT, AUGUST 14, 1931 LAUNCH OF U.S. AIRSHIP "AKRON On August 8 the new airship " Akron," built by the Goodyear-Zeppelin Corporation for the United States Navy, was launched, and Mrs. Hoover, wife of the President, performed the Christening Ceremony. The airship has a length of 785 ft., a diameter of 133 ft., and a cubic capacity of 6J million cubic feet j j -mr CHRISTEN thee, Akron." With these wordsIII was America's new airship christened by Mrs. Ill Hoover, wife of the President of the UnitedStates, at the launching ceremony at Akron, Ohio, on August 8. At the moment Mrs. Hoover spokethe words, 48 snow-white pigeons were released, this taking the place of the more usual breaking of a bottle of champagne.The Akron is far and away the largest airship ever built, and thus is by way of being an experiment, although anexperiment with all the experience of the Zeppelin Com- pany behind it. The airship is of 6,500,000 cu. ft. capa-city, and has a length of 785 ft. and a diameter of 133 ft. The useful lift is in the neighbourhood of 90 tons. Several novel features are incorporated in the Akron,apart from the use of helium in place of hydrogen for the lifting gas, which has, of course, been used before inAmerican airships. From the fact that helium is non- infkunmable, it has been possible to house the enginesinside the hull instead of having them in external nacelles. This reduces the drag, and should result in a higher maxi-mum speed for a given power, and in either a higher cruising speed for the same power as in older airships, orin a lower fuel consumption at the same cruising speed. The eight engines fitted develop 560 h.p. each, and drivethe propellers via shafting and bevel gears on outriggers. The propellers are so arranged that they can be tiltedthrough an angle of 90 degrees, so that they can be used for giving positive or negative lift while the airship isbeing manoeuvred on to or away from a mooring mast. It may be recollected that this system of swivelling pro-pellers was used in this country several years before the war by Mr. Willows on his small non-rigid airships. Themechanical problems of transmitting the greater power of modern engines are, however, a good deal more difficult. The only projection on the Akron, apart from the con-trol surfaces, is the control cabin. She therefore looks a remarkably " clean " ship, and her performance willbe watched with interest. Inside the hull of the Akron are found many newfeatures, but perhaps one of the most interesting is the compartment for housing five aeroplanes. These aero-planes are placed on a trapeze arrangement, and will be lowered through a T-shaped opening in the bottom ofthe hull. Thus the only time they are exposed to the air stream is just after being lowered. Experiments inthis country were carried out several years ago with R.33 and aeroplanes slung underneath the hull. The experi-ments were successful, but carrying the aircraft externally was scarcely a practical proposition. By the use ofhelium the Americans have been able to house their air- craft inside the airship until the moment of release. The-trapeze arrangement has been so designed that it will be possible for the airship to pick up the aircraft againin flight, at least under favourable conditions. Much work still remains to be done on the Akron, sothat it will probably be several months before the first flight is made. The " launching " merely meant that thegas cells or ballonnets were filled with helium until the airship just floated, and then the nose was permitted torise slightly, the airship being allowed to move. The Akron is to be commanded by Lieutenant Com-mander Charles E. Rosendahl, who was for several years commander of the Los Angeles, and who is one of the few-survivors of the Shenandoah airship disaster. When that airship broke, Rosendahl was in the bow section, withwhich he free-ballooned safely to earth, landing about ten miles away from the wreck. Second in command of the Akron will be LieutenantCommander Herbert V. Wiley, who has also formerly com- manded the Los Angeles.Ultimately the Akron will form a unit of the American Pacific Fleet, and will be stationed at Sunnyvale, nearSan Francisco, where a base is being constructed. The second airship, which is being constructed by the Good-year-Zeppelin Corporation for the American Navy, will probably be used in manoeuvres with the Atlantic Fleet.It will be of the same size as the Akron. Mooring Mast and Lightning FROM New York it was reported recently that themooring mast on top of the tallest building, the Empire State Building, was struck repeatedly by lightning duringa severe thunderstorm, and that time after time sheets of fire were seen to shoot past the windows of the building.This does not sound very promising for airship mooring masts on high buildings in the future. Fire at Hythe EVERYONE will sympathise most sincerely with Mr.Hubert Scott Paine, whose works at Hythe caught fire and were burned down, a number of very valuable speed boatsand some tenders under construction for the R.A.F. being destroyed. Mr. Scott Paine was for many years part ownerof the Supermarine Aviation Works at Woolston, and that firm's hangars at Hythe adjoin those of the British PowerBoat Company. For a time the Supermarine hangars were in danger, but ultimately they were saved. The Fairey Long-Range Monoplane DeliveredTHE long-range monoplane (Napier " Lion "), designed and built by the Fairey Aviation Company at Hayes, washanded over to the R.A.F. on July 31. The two officers who will form the crew of the machine are Squadron-LeaderGayford and Flight-Lieut Bett, and they are now put- ting the machine through its acceptance tests at the Faireyaerodrome. Later, the machine will be flown to Cranwell, Lines., and there prepared for whatever long flights it isultimately decided to make. Hope's Appeal DismissedTHE Royal Aero Club announces that the appeal of Mr. W. L. Hope against his disqualification in the recentLondon-Newcastle race was heard by the stewards of the <$> <J> Royal Aero Club on July 29. The stewards who heard the appeal were: Lord Cozens Hardy, Brig.-Gen. Sir CapelHolden and Lieut.-Col. Moore-Brabazon. The appeal was dismissed.Prize for Japanese Trans-Pacific Flight THE Imperial Aviation Society of Japan has offered aprize of 100,000 yen (approximately £10,000) to the Japanese pilot who first carries out a non-stop flight in aJapanese-built aircraft across the Pacific. Refuelling will be permitted. The offer is open until September, 1933.J. C. Webster killed TRAGEDY has overtaken Mr. J. C. Webster, the Cana-dian pilot who recently took part in the King's Cup aii race on a Curtiss-Reid " Rambler." While flying over St.Hubert aerodrome, it is stated, the machine got into £ spin and crashed, Mr. Webster sustaining injuries fronwhich he died later in hospital. His death occurred a fev hours before an official reception, which was to have bet'igiven to celebrate Webster's return from England. " Moths " for China THE De Havilland Aircraft Co., Ltd., has recenti\received an order for six Military Moth training machine1 and two Puss Moth communication monoplanes. The^machines are for the Chinese Military Aerodrome a Changsha, in the Hunan district of Southern ChinaChangsha is under the direct control of the Official Chine^ Government, with headquarters at Nanking. The Mo'"Trainers will be used for the instruction of Chinese Ar Force pilots, while the Puss Moths will probably be r -served for the personal use of high officials. The countr around Changsha is intersected b r a network of river=and it is likely that both types "of machine will subs- quently be fitted with floats. 822
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