List of British airships

Last updated • 7 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia

The first British airship; Spencer's Airship No. 1 in the summer of 1902 MellinsAirship.jpg
The first British airship; Spencer's Airship No. 1 in the summer of 1902

Airship development in the United Kingdom lagged behind that of Germany and France. The first British designed and built airship was constructed by Stanley Spencer, and on 22 September 1902 was flown 30 miles (48 km) from Crystal Palace, London to Ruislip, carrying an advertisement for baby food. A series of more practical airships was constructed by Ernest Willows, the "Willows Number 1" making its first flight near Cardiff on 5 August 1905. The Royal Navy realised that airships similar to Ferdinand von Zeppelin's designs could be of great use and in 1909 ordered construction of a rigid airship. This was completed in 1911 but was wrecked while leaving the hangar before it had flown. Meanwhile, the British Army's School of Ballooning, later the Air Battalion Royal Engineers, acquired a small fleet of semi-rigid and non-rigid airships for observation purposes; they were taken over by the Royal Navy on the creation of the Royal Naval Air Service in 1914. A large number of rigid and non-rigid airships were mainly used to counter the U-Boat campaign in World War I. Interest in military airships declined at the end of the war, but some success in the commercial field inspired the Imperial Airship Scheme; however, the disastrous crash of the R101 in 1930 ended serious government and commercial interest in airships. Since the 1970s, there have been persistent efforts to revive a British airship industry, using new designs, materials and technologies.

Contents

Semi-rigid and non-rigid airships

Willows Airship Number 4 was purchased by the Royal Navy in 1912 Aviation in Britain Before the First World War RAE-O755.jpg
Willows Airship Number 4 was purchased by the Royal Navy in 1912

Spencer airships

Spencer's Airship No. 1 - "The Mellin Airship" (after the advertising that it carried); first flight, 22 September 1902
Spencer's Airship No. 2 - 1903 [1]

Beedle airship

Designed and flown by Captain William Beedle in 1903. [2]

Willows airships

Five early British Army airships Five British Army Airships, the Nulli Secundus, Dirigible No 2, the Beta, the Baby and the Gamma RAE-O104.jpg
Five early British Army airships
Willows Numbers 1 to 5 - constructed by Ernest Willows from 1905.

British Army airships

British Army Dirigible No 1 - or "Nulli Secundus"; first flight, 10 September 1907. Damaged by high wind, 10 October 1907 and rebuilt with enlarged envelope as Nulli Secundus II.
Nulli Secundus II - first flight 24 July 1908. [3] Damaged on 15 August and never repaired [4]
"Baby" - 1909, "British Army Airship No.3"
Beta - May 1910 (a rebuild of "Baby" with a new envelope)
Beta II - 1912 (a rebuild of Beta)
No.2A - 1910, 150 feet long, with a gas capacity of 75,000 feet, powered by an 80hp British Green motor.
Gamma - February 1910
Gamma II - 1912 (A rebuild of Gamma)
Delta - 1912
Eta [5] - August 1913. Transferred to Royal Navy, 1914. [6]

Two French-built airships, Clément-Bayard II and the Morning Post were operated by the British Army from 1910 to 1914. The latter had been donated by the readers of a British newspaper. [7]

A naval SSZ airship escorts a warship during World War I SSZ 37 over ship WWI IWM Q 48005.jpg
A naval SSZ airship escorts a warship during World War I

Royal Naval airships

The underside of an NS (North Sea) class airship. Photography Q27579.jpg
The underside of an NS (North Sea) class airship.
Willows No. 4 - His Majesty's Naval Airship No. 2 - purchased in 1912
SS (Sea Scout) class - 60 airships, the first entered service in March 1915, being a rebuild of Willows No. 4
C (Coastal) class - 35 airships, the first entered service in March 1916, being a rebuild of a Franco-Spanish Astra-Torres airship
SSZ (Sea Scout Zero) class - 77 airships; entered service from September 1916
SSP (Sea Scout Pusher) class - 6 airships; entered service from January 1917
C-Star class - 10 airships: entered service from February 1918
NS (North Sea) class - 14 airships; entered service from March 1918
SST (Sea Scout Twin) class - 13 airships; entered service from June 1918

Post World War II civilian airships

British private airship G-BAWL taking to the air in the summer of 1975 in Bedford England 047a Bedford UK.jpg
British private airship G-BAWL taking to the air in the summer of 1975 in Bedford England
Airship Club Bournemouth - first flight, 1951. Final flight, 16 August 1952 [8]
Chitty Bang Bang - first flight, 1967 semi-rigid in period style for the film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Santos Dumont (G-BAWL) - first flight at Cardington in 1974. A 72 foot (22 metre) non-rigid airship powered by two 20 hp Wankel engines with ducted fans - a private venture that logged 31 flying hours. [9] The BBC made a documentary about this airship in 1974 (released in 1977) about the creation of this airship and its first flight, 'Mr Smith's Airship', which can be seen on Youtube.

Rigid airships

His Majesty's Airship No. 1, the "Mayfly", in 1911 Dirigible british naval airship poss 1911.jpg
His Majesty's Airship No. 1, the "Mayfly", in 1911
No. 9rs
23 class airships
HM Airship No. 23r during experimental launches of a Sopwith Camel parasite fighter in 1918 HMA R 23 Airship With Camel.jpg
HM Airship No. 23r during experimental launches of a Sopwith Camel parasite fighter in 1918
R23X-class airships
R31 class airships
The R34 in 1919 R34, 1919 (Our Generation, 1938).jpg
The R34 in 1919
R33 class airships
R36 class airships
The R38 leaving the hangar at Cardington in June 1921. Zr2onground.jpg
The R38 leaving the hangar at Cardington in June 1921.
R38 class airships
R80 class airships
The R100 moored near Quebec in Canada, 1930 R100 St-Hubert.JPG
The R100 moored near Quebec in Canada, 1930
Imperial Airship Scheme airships

In addition to these airships, there were the following uncompleted projects: Vickers Types I - IV, Admiralty 'Y' Class, R103 and R104 [10]

Modern airship projects

A British Skyship500 being demonstrated to the US Navy in 1983 Skyship500 USN.jpg
A British Skyship500 being demonstrated to the US Navy in 1983
The Airlander 10 at Cardington. Airlander 10 Hangar.JPG
The Airlander 10 at Cardington.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zeppelin</span> Rigid airship type

A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Ferdinand von Zeppelin who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874 and developed in detail in 1893. They were patented in Germany in 1895 and in the United States in 1899. After the outstanding success of the Zeppelin design, the word zeppelin came to be commonly used to refer to all forms of rigid airships. Zeppelins were first flown commercially in 1910 by Deutsche Luftschiffahrts-AG (DELAG), the world's first airline in revenue service. By mid-1914, DELAG had carried over 10,000 fare-paying passengers on over 1,500 flights. During World War I, the German military made extensive use of Zeppelins as bombers and as scouts. Numerous bombing raids on Britain resulted in over 500 deaths.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airship</span> Powered lighter-than-air aircraft

An airship or dirigible balloon is a type of aerostat or lighter-than-air aircraft that can navigate through the air under its own power. Aerostats gain their lift from a lifting gas that is less dense than the surrounding air.

This is a list of aviation-related events from 1907:

<i>R38</i>-class airship British rigid airship class

The R.38 class of rigid airships was designed for Britain's Royal Navy during the final months of the First World War, intended for long-range patrol duties over the North Sea. Four similar airships were originally ordered by the Admiralty, but orders for three of these were cancelled after the armistice with Germany and R.38, the lead ship of the class, was sold to the United States Navy in October 1919 before completion.

Air Nostrum, legally incorporated as Air Nostrum Líneas Aéreas del Mediterráneo, S.A., is a Spanish regional airline based in Valencia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hybrid airship</span> Partially aero-static aircraft

A hybrid airship is a powered aircraft that obtains some of its lift as a lighter-than-air (LTA) airship and some from aerodynamic lift as a heavier-than-air aerodyne.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">R33-class airship</span> Class of British rigid airships within the Royal Naval Air Service during WWI

The R.33 class of British rigid airships were built for the Royal Naval Air Service during the First World War, but were not completed until after the end of hostilities, by which time the RNAS had become part of the Royal Air Force. The lead ship, R.33, served successfully for ten years and survived one of the most alarming and heroic incidents in airship history when she was torn from her mooring mast in a gale. She was called a "Pulham Pig" by the locals, as the blimps based there had been, and is immortalised in the village sign for Pulham St Mary. The only other airship in the class, R.34, became the first aircraft to make an east to west transatlantic flight in July 1919 and, with the return flight, made the first two-way crossing. It was decommissioned two years later, after being damaged during a storm. The crew nicknamed her "Tiny".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">R31-class airship</span> Type of aircraft

The R31 class of British rigid airships was constructed in the closing months of World War I, and comprised two aircraft, His Majesty's Airship R31 and R32. They were designed by the Royal Corps of Naval Constructors – with assistance from a Herr Müller who had defected to Britain, and previously worked for the Schütte-Lanz airship company – and built by Short Brothers at the Cardington airship sheds. The airship frame was made from spruce plywood laminated into girder sections, weatherproofed with varnish, and also fireproofed. These enclosed 21 gas bags. R31 was the largest British airship to fly before the end of the war, and the class remains the largest mobile wooden structures ever built.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rigid airship</span> Airship in which the envelope is supported by a framework

A rigid airship is a type of airship in which the envelope is supported by an internal framework rather than by being kept in shape by the pressure of the lifting gas within the envelope, as in blimps and semi-rigid airships. Rigid airships are often commonly called Zeppelins, though this technically refers only to airships built by the Luftschiffbau Zeppelin company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lockheed Martin P-791</span> Experimental hybrid airship.

The Lockheed Martin P-791 is an experimental aerostatic and aerodynamic hybrid airship developed by Lockheed Martin. The first flight of the P-791 took place on 31 January 2006 at the company's flight test facility at United States Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, CA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airship Industries Skyship 600</span> British non-rigid airship

The Airship Industries Skyship 600 is a modern airship, originally designed by British company Airship Industries, further developed by a subsidiary of Westinghouse Electric Corporation. The type certificate holder is now Skyship Services of Orlando, Florida.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Semi-rigid airship</span> Lighter-than-air aircraft

A semi-rigid airship is an airship which has a stiff keel or truss supporting the main envelope along its length. The keel may be partially flexible or articulated and may be located inside or outside the main envelope. The outer shape of the airship is maintained by gas pressure, as with the non-rigid "blimp". Semi-rigid dirigibles were built in significant quantity from the late 19th century but in the late 1930s they fell out of favour along with rigid airships. No more were constructed until the semi-rigid design was revived by the Zeppelin NT in 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Army Dirigible No 1</span> Type of aircraft

British Army Dirigible No 1, christened Nulli Secundus was a semi-rigid airship. First flown on 10 September 1907, it was Britain's first powered military aircraft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Capper</span> British First World War general

Major-General Sir John Edward Capper was a senior officer of the British Army during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century who served on the North-West Frontier of British India, in South Africa and during the First World War, where he was instrumental in the development of the tank. He was the older brother of Major-General Thompson Capper, who was killed in action at the Battle of Loos in late 1915.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cardington Airfield</span> Former Royal Air Force station in Bedfordshire, England

Cardington Airfield, previously RAF Cardington, is a former Royal Air Force station in Bedfordshire, England, with a long and varied history, particularly in relation to airships and balloons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airship Industries</span>

Airship Industries was a British manufacturers of modern non-rigid airships (blimps) active under that name from 1980 to 1990 and controlled for part of that time by Alan Bond. The first company, Aerospace Developments, was founded in 1970, and a successor, Hybrid Air Vehicles, remains active as of 2022. Airship Industries itself was active between 1980 and 1990.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hybrid Air Vehicles Airlander 10</span> British hybrid airship prototype

The Hybrid Air Vehicles Airlander 10 is a hybrid airship designed and built by British manufacturer Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV). Comprising a helium airship with auxiliary wing and tail surfaces, it flies using both aerostatic and aerodynamic lift and is powered by four diesel engine-driven ducted propellers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hybrid Air Vehicles</span> British manufacturer of hybrid airships

Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV) Limited is a British limited company and a British manufacturer of hybrid airships, though none have been built since the crash of its last demonstrator in Nov 2017. These aircraft use both aerodynamics and lighter-than-air (LTA) technology to generate lift, potentially allowing the vehicle to stay aloft for several weeks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Herbert Scott</span> British airship pilot and engineer

Major George Herbert "Lucky Breeze" Scott, CBE, AFC, was a British airship pilot and engineer. After serving in the Royal Naval Air Service and Royal Air Force during World War I, Scott went on to command the airship R34 on its return Atlantic crossing in 1919, which marked the first transatlantic flight by an airship and the first east–west transatlantic flight by an aircraft of any kind. Subsequently, he worked at the Royal Airship Works in connection with the Imperial Airship Scheme and took part in a second return Atlantic crossing, this time by the R100, in 1930. He was killed later in the year aboard the R100's near-sister, the R101, when it crashed in northern France during a flight to India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airship Industries Skyship 500</span> British non-rigid airship

The Skyship 500 is a non-rigid airship designed and built in the United Kingdom during the 1980s.

References

  1. The Lighter Than Air Society - Stanley Spencer’s Airship No 1 Makes First Powered Flight in Great Britain
  2. Camplin, Giles (2021). "Guide – A Short History of Balloon and Airship Manufacture in the UK" (PDF). www.airshipsonline.com. Aviation and Aerospace Archives Initiative. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  3. "The Army Airship". News. The Times. No. 38708. London. 25 July 1908. p. 12.
  4. S F Cody - Nulli Secundus II
  5. D'Orcy's Airship Manual - Royal Aircraft Factory (formerly Army Balloon Factory), Farnborough Archived 6 July 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  6. "British military aviation 1862-1912 - Airships". www.rafmuseum.org.uk. Royal Air Force Museum. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  7. Castle, Ian (2009), British Airships 1905-30, Osprey Publishing Ltd, ISBN   9781472800664
  8. The Airship Heritage Trust - Airships index - The Bournemouth
  9. Tomlinson, Jaspar; Camplin, Giles. "THE SANTOS DUMONT (G-BAWL)". www.airshipsonline.com. The Airship Heritage Trust. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  10. Peter W. Brooks Zeppelin: Rigid Airships 1893 - 1940 (1992) Putnum
  11. Gabriel Alexander Khoury (editor) Airship Technology, Cambridge University Press 2012, ISBN   978-1-107-01970-6 (p. 471)
  12. "Airships - HAV 304". www.airshipmarket.org. Airshipmarket. Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
  13. "LEMV Airship Sold Back to Manufacturer for a Song". www.defenseindustrydaily.com. Defense Industry Daily. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
  14. Vincent, James (8 April 2015). "This massive airship is getting a $2.7 million grant to revolutionize transport". www.theverge.com. The Verge (Vox Media Inc). Retrieved 30 April 2015.
  15. "Airlander 10 poised to resume test flights after crash". www.bbc.co.uk. BBC. 8 April 2017. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
  16. Busby, Mattha (18 November 2017). "Giant airship comes loose in UK". www.theguardian.com. Guardian News & Media Limited. Retrieved 30 September 2019.
  17. Busby, Mattha (13 January 2019). "Airlander 10: prototype of world's longest aircraft retired". www.theguardian.com. Guardian News & Media Limited. Retrieved 30 September 2019.
  18. "Airlander 10: World's longest aircraft to get longer". www.bbc.co.uk. BBC News. 11 January 2020. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
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