The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1921-06-10
]. {. CONSTRUCTS
GREAT TERMINAL
FOR BIC AIRSHIP5
Lakehurst, N. j., Hangar Lar
gest Structure of That Kind
END DOORS IT'S FEET HIGH
If Set down in City Would Occu-
py Three Whole Blocks
Motors Open Windows

! New York, June 10.-America's first
great terminal for giant aircraft is
nearing completion at Lakehurst, N. j,
! This structure, the largest Of its
kind on earth, Is SOB feet long, 264
feet wide, and 1875 feet high Some
idea Of It's immense size may be CLEAN
ed from the fact that ii set down in
lcity the hangar wou d occupy three
solid blocks. It's doors at each end
stand more than l15 feet high and
are 264 feet wide. A 16 story sky
lscraper could be pu he'd through the
space disclosed by the doors when
they are opened.
! The hangar is officially known as
the United States Navy Airship
i Hangar, and represents the latest word
/ in construction for buildings of this
type. 1t is planned to have Il ready
/ in the cary summer to house the two
giant dirigibles now under construc-
ton, the ZR-2 building at league Is
and navy yard Philadelphia and the
fA1N = hISAt ing NbAil BlNlLOh III lJuS anu
The transatlantic fl ght of the latter
is scheduled for late in July or early
! in August and the United States
Navy Department plans to have the
hangar completed for service before
the airships are ready to sail
Giant Mooring Mast
Incidental to the hangar is gi.
gantic moor ng mast to which great
dirigibles may be tied when 1t is i'm
practicable TO house them inside th1,
hangar. The mast is so constructed
that the giants Of the air will be moor
ed, bow on. and VII swing in the dir.
ection OF the wind thus avoiding the
dangerous force exerted by high winds.
The result of experiments with the
Lakehurst mooring mast will deter.
mlne the policy of the Navy Depalt.
ment IN erecting similar mooring
masts at various air stations through
out the country such as St. Louis.
Kansas City, Chicago. Denver san
Francisco, Seattle, New Orleans. At.
lanta, Columbus, O., and San Diego
The new airships nearing complet-
ion are Of such large proportions.
each being 700 feet long and So feet
III dlamater, as large as many of the
great ocean liners. that the manner of
docking them presented serious
problems in engineering, but It is
believed that the lakehurst hangar
will go far toward solving many Of
these problems.
First in Importance came the quest
ion of doors to the hangar Each
leaf of the two doors, there being two
. leaves TO a door, is made up of 500
tons Of steel and corrugated asbestos.
4, These leaves are supported on con.
crete trucks which in turn rest on
wheels the size of those on freight
car The leaves are rolled apart by
a 25-horse.power electric motor. II
/, man power were needed to open the
/; doors, it is estimated that 1900 men
would be called OH Naval experts
calculate that the giant doors can
i, not be rolled open with n Is min.
utes and the entire process of hons.
, ing one Of the rigibles will consume
approximately 40 minutes.
Running lengthwise through the
hangar is railroad and three trolley
, slots technically described as dock
ing rails. The d,rigible about to en-.
ter the hangar will be cable.fastened
to those rails, which extend on a
l,500foot runway at either end. and
guided to its birth
Windows Opened by Motors
Under the roof among a network of
steel rafters, five monorail cranes
, support movable platforms which en-
able workmen to repair an aircraft
after it has docked These rafters are
so far above the floor of the han.
gar that the workmen resolve them
: selves into mere specks.
SO large are the g'ass windows in
: the sides and the rof that individual
motors are necessary to open each
, window.
s Every precaution has been taken to
make the hangar as nearly fire frooi
as possible. The concrete floor is
G asphalt covered to prevent falling
> tools striking sparks and possibly
+ exploding gas.
g Searchlights of high Intensity will
guide the drigibles at night and sun
t ken lights, arranged like crosses, at
, the end of each runway, will facilit
! ate landings
6 Like the doors the entire siding oI
- the hangar is Of corrugated asbestos
I arranged in strips, alternating be
4 tween gray and two shedes of brown
= Experts declare it will be impossible
: for a hostile observer to identify the
y | .aknhnrct from tho mir