The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1921-08-27
R-38 Flaws Known
 To Navy Year Ago

Washington, Aug: 27.-The in-fater deaths practically the whole Aneri- can and British crew on it's trial trip. tura1 weaknesses to which our flying men attribute the disaster.
 Extra ordinary as it may seem, these defects were known to both army and navy aviation men and formed the basis of adverse reports on file in the departments.
 In the testimony there are passages that show the British knew the faults of the design as well as ourselves. The only explanation of the navy's ordering the airship in these circum- stances was that it needed such a ship, and the R-3S was available.
 Was Like 1914 Zeppelin
 Denuded of the specification techni calities, the R-3s was merely a 1914 Zeppelin. into the middle of which had been sandwiched an extra section to make 1t longer. There were other defects which were pointed out by the American officer who inspected her in July. 1919, when the frames were be- ing assembled and the making of the gondolas was practically complete.
 'tSo," runs this officers report "the design can be said to be that of a tained by the insertion of parallel sec lions in the design of previous ships" This report was made while the ship was. building. Accounts of the broke in two annidships-just where | the extra section was inserted in the | design after the 1914 Zeppelin.
 .. This ship" the report continues "Her basic design was patterned after an obsolete Zeppelin type. An other feature which in itself should have relegated the R-3S to the scrap heap was that her stabilizing sur faces were planned to be externally braced. All approved practice in the quires internally braced fin surfac ces built as an integral part of the ship
 '"The aircraft section of the Allied Naval Commission, which visited the | different air stations in Germany in December. 191S.- commented on this | phase in their confidential report, witt h | which English and American naval officers are familiar. A modern shin built without internally braced fins for the reason that they do away with | external bracing wires, which in l crease resistance and lessen speed | s'Inter-nal construction strengthens both the fins and the hull. increasing safety thereby. They increase the
 manoeuvring power greatly: They tend to hold the ship to its course more truly. They permit passage in- l side the fins to the control surfaces thus permitting repair Or adjustment
 during flight"
 Was Obsolete, Navy Knew | In another portion of the testimony
 one of the navy aviation authorities
 is quoted as stating that the navy
 realized the airship R-Ss was obsolete
 when it bought the craft
 It is worth adding that Brig. Gen
 Edward Maitland, who commanded
 the R-34 on her tripj to America, was
 ships sister craft, said when he ha6
 completed the first lightertflana air ; transatlantic flight that the R; B l 6eSiOnad and
 struction on her was started during ; the war-work on her was under way when the navy bargained for her. , Patterned on Zeppelins
 The first English ships of the Zep IspeIin type. the R-33 and the R-34
 were patterned after the Zeppeh1
 L-33, bfought near Colchester. Eng , land. in 1916. and the Zeppelin L'-49 z brought down in France the sam !, year. The first British ships. R-3: , and R-S4, were not completed unti | has devoted years to studying tn :. technical side of lighter than air craft , says:
 "without practical experience il :, rigid powers and limitations, the Eng . fish went on producing larger ship . by simply inserting parallel sections t which gave a greater lift only at tn cost of considerable los sof speed" The same officer adds that the R-3 :, had simple pivot bearing for attach ment of the central surfaces, whicl : is not the best modern practice, an [ that the top rudder and stabilize 2 had 50 per cent. more bearing surfac | than the bottom ones, while the to t and bottom surfaces, should be tn s same.
 : Other experts say the power gon a dola was in various ways inadequat 1t and obsolete.
 J It is said the motor of the R-S t was not sufficiently accessible. O Condemned by British @The mOfnrS inc Iod in ho R-2S continued the report, were condemn