Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1922-03-03
AirShip Roma, Bought in Italy, Is
Destroyed With Loss OF
Thirty-Four Lives.
PROBABLY WAS DEFECTIVE
Senate Reservationists Busy With the
Four-Power Treaty-Movement to
Postpone Soldiers Bonus Leg
isIation-Irish Factions in
Three Months Truce.
By EDWARD w. PIcKARD


THIRTY-FOUR more lives have been
l. sacrificed to Americas %infatuation
for foreign-built airships. If we must
have these craft, is it not about time
we relied on our own designers and
constructors for them? Unless the in
formation available at this writing is
misleading, the disaster that befell the
Roma near Hampton Roads last week
will be found to be, in its causes, com
parable to that of the ZR-2 in Eng
land last August. In both cases, ap-
p%arently, there were vital defects in
construction of which the builders
were cognizant.
So far as investigation has revealed,
the fall of the Roma was due to the
breaking of the controls that regulat-
ed the altitude of the airship. Despite
the heroic efforts of her navigators and
the frantic casting overheard Of all
ballast by the crew, the huge balloon
plunged downward from a height of
about 400 feet. AS she crashed against
the ground she broke some high ten
olOn ClCSLIlC Wills anu at Tic ooliC
moment the big gasoline tanks burst.
In the resulting explosion and fire
most of the victims met a mercifully
instant death. Even if the Roma had
not struck the wires, say army air ser
vice officials, the men caught under the
vessels gas bag and steel frame would
have burned to death, for the gasoline
from the broken tanks would have ig-
nited from the engines. This fact may
avert possible blame for the using of
ordinary field gas in the Roma instead
Of the noninfiammable helium gas, de-
veloped by the air service. All the
helium in the country was in the Ro-
mas bag when she was given a trial
"trip late in December, but as this was
wanted for a contemplated long tour
over the country next summer, it was
drawn out and the ordinary gas sub
stituted.
Although General Mitchell, head of
the United States air service, now in
Berlin, says the Roma was perfect,
there is reason to believe that he is
mistaken. Last summer Kenneth L..
Roberts witnessed a demonstration
light of the balloon In Italy shortly
after she had been sold to America,
and he wrote for the Saturday Eve
ling Post a story of that flight in
which he brought out these points
That the gas bags were old and
leaky that the Italians wanted a calm
lay for the trip that they refused to
sail the ship over Mount Vesuvius, APP
oarently fearing the heat of the era
ter; that they preferred sailing over
he ocean, the air being more quiet
here; that the ship reared, bucked,
Jumped, and was buffeted about like
a feather in a cyclone; that the ship
lad a tendency to nose downward at
A high rate of speed.
1t may be this new disaster will re-
suit in the cancellation of the order
for a Zeppelin for America to be built
IN Germany. General Mitchell says
this craft is not under way, because
Of the nero difficulties between
America, the entente and Germany.
These difficulties center on whether
America shall get the latest type or
an old style. If America wants the
attest, the entente must permit Ger
many to build airships, which the Yer
sailles treaty forbids."