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Early Airship Facts

The history of the airship is quite interesting. We must remember that men had been flying in hot air balloons and then airships, before the airplane was invented. The first raid conducted by a balloon was by the Austrians. They didn't have anyone in them but simply floated them over the city of Venice, where their bombs exploded. The bombs were on timed fuses. This may not have been too accurate or devastating but I am sure it did scare the heck out of the population.

The first person to accomplish powered flight was Henri Giffard. He launched his 144 foot long airship on September 24, 1852. It had a steam powered engine. He was only able to partially steer the ship as steering was a problem yet to be solved in airships. The problem of steering was solved in 1886, some thirty four years later by Gottlieb Daimler who engineered a gasoline engine that was light enough for use in airships.

In the U.S. we had a supply of hydrogen and we used it, as far back as the Civil War but the steering problem made airships impractical at the time. The U.S. remained behind in airships for quite some time.

	Charles Renard was the builder of the Le France, the first Airship capable of returning to its starting point in a light wind. Arthur Krebs, co builder of the Le France Picture Sources: U.S. Centennial Of Flight Commission
	In 1884, Charles Renard and Arthur C. Krebs, inventors and military officers in the French Army Corps of Engineers, built an elongated balloon, La France, which was a vast improvement over earlier models. La France was the first airship that could return to its starting point in a light wind. It was 165 feet (50.3 meters) long, its maximum diameter was 27 feet (8.2 meters), and it had a capacity of 66,000 cubic feet (1,869 cubic meters). Like the Tissandiers' airship, an electric, battery-powered motor propelled La France, but this one produced 7.5 horsepower (5.6 kilowatts). This motor was later replaced with one that produced 8.5 horsepower (6.3 kilowatts). A long and slender car consisting of a silk-covered bamboo framework lined with canvas hung below the balloon. The car, which was 108 feet long (33 meters), 4.5 feet (1.4 meters) wide, and 6 feet (1.8 meters) deep, housed the lightweight batteries and the motor. The motor drove a four-bladed wooden tractor propeller that was 23 feet (7 meters) in diameter but which could be inclined upwards when landing to avoid damage to the blades. Renard also provided a rudder and elevator, balloon nets, a sliding weight to compensate for any shift in the center of gravity, and a heavy guide rope to assist in landing. The first flight of La France took place on August 9, 1884. Renard and Krebs landed successfully at the parade ground where they had begun—a flight of only 5 miles (8 kilometers) and 23 minutes but one where they had been in control throughout. During 1884 and 1885, La France made seven flights. Although her batteries limited her flying range, she demonstrated that controlled flight was possible if the airship had a sufficiently powerful lightweight motor. Source: U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission
	A wealthy Brazilian Alberto Santos-Dumont combined the internal combustion engine and the balloon. Alberto Santos-Dumont was really not an inventor but he perfected the art of flying an airship. Source: U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission
	Dumont's airship rounds the Eiffel Tower to win the Deutsch Prize, 1901 Picture Source: U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission
	Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin begins the construction of his 1st airship. He flies for the 1st time during the summer, above the lake Constance in Friedrichshafen, in 1900. He was getting ready to enter the contest for the Deutsch Prize Picture Source: U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission
	ZR3 entering a hangar for the first time, Naval Air Station, Lakehurst, N.J., in 1924 Picture Source: U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission
	Dumont's Number 9 over a village. Picture Source: U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission
	Henri Giffard's Airship. This was the first one to use powered flight. Picture Source: U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission
	The French were designing airships at a very early time. Here is a photograph of a design that was submitted in 1852. Picture Source: Library Of Congress

Its a shame that these majestic airships were made obsolete by the airplane, they sure looked good sailing through the skies. Some people are rethinking the airship. They feel that it would be a very cheap way to transport cargo as speed would not be as critical as price in many cases. We may yet see our skies filled with futuristic airships.