Yeah, I've read some about that over the last couple of years. Seems there was more than some engineering f-ups in that one. A good bit of fraud, it seems, too.
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6 years ago
Just imagine... a BUILDING, made of WOOD!!
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6 years ago
Steve wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@googlegroups.com:
Good marketting PR speak, but factually untrue. The largest timber building in NA would be one of the blimp hangers the Navy built in WW2, of which half a dozen still exist. They are about 10 times as large as this new building.
John
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6 years ago
The hanger for the USS Macon (1933 Moffett Field) has a steel structure, which is currently quite obvious when one drives by, since the outer skin has been removed.
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The Goodyear Airdock (1929) is also steel structure.
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Lakehurst #1 (1921) is also steel:
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Can you name a specific airship hanger built from wood?
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6 years ago
For openers, look up Lakehurst 5 and 6.
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6 years ago
My family and I had the pleasure of taking off from and landing in the field next to the Goodyear Airlock. Guess what we were flying in?
The Goodyear Blimp!
It was one of the coolest things I've ever done.
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6 years ago
We lived in the Akron area for a year. Goodyear Blimps flew around the area all the time.
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6 years ago
"J. Clarke" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@news.eternal-september.org:
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Moffett Field 2 & 3 and Tillamook NAS would be two others that come immediately to mind.
Basically when the Navy was experimenting with Zepplins in the 20's and 30's (including USS Macon) the hangers were built of steel. When they developed the blimp program for submarine spotting in WW2, the additional hangers were built of wood, due to wartime demand for steel for other uses.
John
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6 years ago
Didja every get a free ride? :-)
One cool part is to feel them power up to land. Obviously, they have to force them to go down.
(As a kid I used to see them over NYC all the time. Never imagined that I'd ever get to go up in one)
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6 years ago
Houston used to have a Goodyear Blimp hanger for many years, it was not unusual to see the blimp floating around the city.
And that reminds me of the blimp back in the early 70's in Corpus Christi. I was in high school and played golf. I was on a newly opened course that happened to be built on the "old airport" grounds. So no sizeable trees yet. The blimp was being tethered there for some promotion. Anyway while we were playing the blimp was coming in to be tethered and I recall the front rope/line/what ever you call it, almost dragging across the green. It looked like the mother ship was going to squash us. It made a certain part of you body pucker. ;~0
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6 years ago
Leon wrote in news:NIOdnSRuMLUcYIPEnZ2dnUU7-T snipped-for-privacy@giganews.com:
The Pompano blimp base isn't far from me, and they used to come over my house all the time - in the winter they'd do training flights over the Everglades just to the west. They haven't done that so much in recent years, for some reason.
John
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6 years ago
The Goodyear Airdock (1929) is also steel structure.
Your worlds are colliding, now, DerbyDad. The Soap Box Derby in Akron is held just across the field from the Goodyear Blimp hangar. You can go on google maps and see how close they are.
The hangar was a popular field trip destination for school kids in the Akron area. I still remember visiting it when I was very young. At the time, it was the largest self-supported structure in the world. It was so big and high inside that it would actually rain inside the hangar. The rain was really condensation on the roof that would drip down, but that's kinda what rain is.
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6 years ago
Not even a paid one. :-(
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6 years ago
The Goodyear blimp hangar isn't in Akron. It's in Mogadore, OH, about
20-30 miles East of Akron. It's at the Wingfoot country club. ;-) The old blimp hangar is now owned by Lockheed Martin (where I worked when I was in Akron). they were doing some work on RADAR blimps for the DD and Homeland there but I can't remember if they were actually using the old blimp hangar.- Vote on answer
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6 years ago
The old one is the the f'n one I'm talking about. Geez. You just love to argue about meaningless bullshit.
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6 years ago
Geez, sensitive much? Just the facts ma'am.
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6 years ago
Well yes I am, but seriously, this came over my LinkedIn
The Goodyear Airdock (1929) is also steel structure.
No it's not the facts, it's just you arguing for the sake of arguing. You do it all the time. You get some joy in arguing pedantic, semantic bullshit. There are many times when you're helpful but most of the time you're nitpicking irrelevant crap like you did with my post.
That was the hangar I was talking about but you felt the need to be a know-it-all and butt in for some reason with irrelevant information that didn't change a thing I wrote.
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6 years ago
Yeah, a sensitive old git. Stop taking everything so seriously!
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6 years ago
Actually, it wasn't a collision, it was a direct connection.
Back in the late 90's, early 2000's, Goodyear was a corporate sponsor of the Soap Box Derby. The blimp always made an appearance at the World Championships at Derby Downs in Akron. One of the perks of winning the World Championship in one of the 3 divisions was a ride in the blimp. The race is always held on a Saturday in July and the blimp ride is usually taken the next day while the champion, their family and of course, the blimp, is in town.
In 2003 my son won the World Championship in the Masters (top) division and we were planning on taking our ride the next day. Early on Sunday morning we got a phone call that it was too windy for the blimp to fly. We were told to expect a letter from Goodyear which basically amounted to a lifetime pass worth 1 free blimp ride for my son and (maybe) some guests. In essence, the letter said that at anytime that my son and the blimp were in the same area, and there was room and there was time and etc. etc., my son would be able to take his free ride. It was essentially a lifetime hit or miss, maybe it'll happen someday kind of thing.
Fast forward to 2004. My daughter wins the local race in our city, which qualifies her for the World Championship race in Akron. We go to Akron where she is unfortunately eliminated early in the day. That's when I notice a Goodyear table in the vendor section near the track. I round up the family and with the letter from Goodyear in my hand, I go over to speak to them. An hour later we are all in a van heading out onto the field near the old blimp hanger watching the blimp land to pick up us!
Now, keep in mind that the blimp ride is usually given on the Sunday after the race, when the crowds have gone home and the only activity at Derby Downs is a bunch of families loading their kid's cars into trailers for the trip home. In our case, we're getting our ride
*during* the World Championships when the place is packed with hundreds or racers, thousands of family members, etc. In addition, since this was a spur of the moment thing, it ended up being a private flight with my entire family of 6 being able to go. Sweet!I can just about guarantee that we are the only Champion's family that got to watch the World Championship race from the blimp. It was an unforgettable opportunity. Truly a once in a lifetime experience for most families.
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6 years ago
Well yes I am, but seriously, this came over my LinkedIn
The Goodyear Airdock (1929) is also steel structure.
Wow, what a great story! I bet you'll never forget that view of the races. I'm sure the hill looks quite a bit different from up there than on the ground.
Goodyear, Firestone and other tire companies were pretty much Akron's bread and butter for many decades. My Dad worked at Goodyear and anyone who lived near or in Akron had at least someone in the family working in a tire plant.
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6 years ago
The funniest part of the ride involved SWMBO. She is seriously afraid of heights and therefore of flying. She has to be medicated before she can get on a plane. It took a while to convince her to go on the blimp ride with us, but eventually her motherly instincts took over and she knew that she needed to be part of this great family experience.
The gondola of the blimp we were in was set up almost like a mini-van, with 2 rows of single seats and a bench seat in the back. The pilot sat in the front seat, just like a US mini-van driver would. SWMBO was sitting in the middle row, passenger side. At one point, as this huge beast was slowly floating through the air, the pilot casually turned around, hooked an arm over the back of his seat and started chatting with us. SWMBO got visibly (and audibly) upset. "What are you doing?" she nervously asked the pilot. "Why aren't you looking where we are going? Shouldn't you be flying this thing?"
We all cracked up. The pilot pointed out of the front window at the wide open sky in front of us, shrugged his shoulders and asked SWMBO "What do you think I'm going to hit?" It was classic.
He got serious after that and explained that wherever the blimp is flying, it has the right of way over all other aircraft. There isn't too much evasive action a blimp can take, so it's up to all other pilots in the area to take action if needed.