British Airships, Past, Present, and Future

by George Whale

In 1906, Major von Parseval experimented, in Berlin, with a non-rigid type of airship. His first ship had a volume of 65,200 cubic feet, but owing to his system of suspensions, the car hung 27 feet 6 inches below the envelope. A Daimler engine was used, driving a four-bladed propeller. Owing to the great overall height of this ship, experiments were made to determine a system of rigging, enabling the car to be slung closer to the envelope, and in later types the elliptical rigging girdle was adopted. His later ships were of large dimensions and proved very satisfactory. About the same time Major Gross also built airships for the German aeronautical battalion.

It is, however, the rigid airship that has made Germany famous, and we must now glance at the evolution of these ships with which we became so familiar during the war.

The first rigid airship bearing any resemblance to those of the present day was designed by David Schwartz, and was built in St. Petersburg in 1893. It was composed of aluminium plates riveted to an aluminium framework. On inflation, the frame-work collapsed and the ship was unusable.

In 1895 he designed a second rigid airship, which was built in Berlin by Messrs. Weisspfennig and Watzesch. The hull framework was composed of aluminium and was 155 feet long, elliptical in cross section, giving a volume of 130,500 cubic feet. It was pointed in front and rounded off aft. The car, also constructed of the same material, was rigidly attached to the hull by a lattice framework, and the whole hull structure was covered in with aluminium sheeting. A 12 horse-power Daimler benzine motor was installed in the car, driving through the medium of a belt twin aluminium screw propellers; no rudders were supplied, the steering being arranged by means of a steering screw placed centrally to the ship above the top of the car. Inflation took place at the end of 1897 by a method of pressing out air-filled fabric cells which were previously introduced into the hull. This operation took three and a half hours. On the day of the first flight trials there was a fresh wind of about 17 miles per hour. The airship ascended into the air, but, apparently, could make little headway against the wind. During the trip the driving-belt became disengaged from the propellers and the ship drifted at the mercy of the wind, but sustained little damage on landing. After being deflated, the hull began to break up under the pressure of the wind and was completely destroyed by the vandalism of the spectators.

In 1898 Graf F. von Zeppelin, inspired by the example of Schwartz, and assisted by the engineers Kober and Kubler, conceived the idea of constructing a rigid airship of considerable dimensions. For this purpose a floating shed was built on Lake Constance, near to Friedrichshafen. The hull was built of aluminium lattice-work girders, and had the form of a prism of twenty-four surfaces with arch-shaped ends. In length it was 420 feet, with a diameter of 38 feet 6 inches, and its capacity was 400,000 cubic feet. The longitudinal framework was divided by a series of rings, called transverse frames, into seventeen compartments containing fabric gasbags. The transverse frames were fitted with steel wire bracings, both radial and chord, and to strengthen the whole a triangular aluminium keel of lattice work was used. A vertical and horizontal rudder were fitted to the forward portion of the ship, and aft another vertical rudder. The whole exterior of the ship was fitted with a fabric outer cover.

Two aluminium cars, each about 20 feet long, were rigidly attached to the framework of the hull. Each car was furnished with a 16 horse-power Daimler engine, driving two four-bladed screw propellers of aluminium sheeting. These propellers were situated on the side of the hull at the centre of resistance. The transmission was supplied by steel tubes with universal cross joints through the medium of bevel gears. Reversible driving arrangements were installed in the cars in order that the ship could be driven backwards and forwards. Electric bells, telegraphs, and speaking tubes were also fitted, and it can be seen that for general arrangements this airship was a long way ahead of any built at that date.

The first flight was made on July 2nd, 1900. The ship attained a speed of 17 per hour, and the numerous technical details stood the tests well. The stability was considered sufficient, and the height of flight could be altered by the horizontal rudder. The landing on the water was accomplished without difficulty, and could be regarded as free from danger. The faults requiring remedy were, firstly, the upper cross stays, which buckled in flight owing to insufficient strength for the length of the hull; secondly, the gasbags were not sufficiently gastight and, thirdly, the power of the engines were not sufficient for such a heavy ship.

This airship was broken up in 1902.

In 1905 the second ship of the series was completed. She was of nearly the same size as the previous ship, but the workmanship was much superior. Increased engine-power was also supplied, as in this instance two 85 horse-power Mercedes engines were fitted. This ship was destroyed by a storm while landing during the next year.

The third ship, which was completed in 1906, was the first Zeppelin airship acquired by the Government, and lasted for a considerable time, being rebuilt twice, first in 1908 and again in 1911. She was slightly larger than the previous two.