Evening star., 1924-08-17

Pullman, its walls Of cloth, has four
berths. Beyond the passengers rooms
arc quarters for the ecrew-hammocks
slung along the center gangway.
1,5ss Passenger F1axhss Made.
A seagull would find scant pick
ings should it follow the wake Of
the ZR-3, for nothing on board when
the ship takes into the air can be
thrown overheard during the flight.
All garbage and waste materials must
be retained. Bags are fitted under
neath the backbone, between 1t and
the bottom covering, to contain such
waste.
Now, as America appears to be go
ing in for the commercial develop
ment of lighter than-air craft what
about their commercial possibilities?
In Germany, before the war, they had
been proved both practical and profit
able. AS long ago as 1910 there was
organized in Germany commercial
alrship transport company From that
date until the outbreak of the war
when all available Zeppelins were
Communicated for military uses. this
concern. operating five ships. carried
out the following table without mis-
hap to a single passenger:
Aggregate number Of flights, 1.5SS:
duration of flights in hours, 3.167;
total mileage, 1885 kilometers, or
1O7,S35 miles. Number of passengers
transported. 34,22S.
The five ships. however, had no req
lar routes. 1t was not until after the
war that the first regular daily pas
senger service was opened.
The BodenSee, called the German
name for Lake Constance. ran a daily
route between FTicdrichshafen Con
the Swiss border) and Berlin in five
to eight hours.
The fare was about so marks, the
present charge for first class rail
way ticket between those two points,
which requires Is to Is hours for
the best trains to cover. The Boden-
see made so trips
Conts Not ProhibItfvc.
a sister ship. the Nordstern. was
built in 1919 to be put upon the Fried
richshafen- Berlin route. but soon af-
ter her completion the Interallied
Commission on Control put an end
to airship operations by the Germans
The prevalent belief that airplane
or airship traffic is prohibitively ex-
penslve is a false one. Numerous air
plane lines are being operated profitably
In Europe today. There are no airship
lines at the present moment as only
the Germans ever tried lighter
than-air service. But the airship
lines operated by Germany before
the allies forbade the traffic averaged
80 per cent annual profits.
AS rule of thumb. airship men de-
clare that an airship line will pay
IL the ships carry AS great a paying
load as they carry in weight OF fuel
The ZR-2, for example. has use
full lifting capacity OF 43 tons. 1t
carries 80 tons of fuel for trans
Atlantic flight so that after all
operating expenses teven profits),
are paid out. it still has 10 tons TO
the good.
Cost SI,5OU.OOO.
\ better idea of the paying pros
poets of such an a;rship as the ZR-3
while still a very rough calculation.
can be had from SOM figures It cost
approximately s1.5o0. 900 to build De-
probation is figured at per cent and
interest on investment at per cent
Thirteen per cent Of the total cost is
*l?3,oVo. " is estimated that an air
ship could make 100 Transatlantic
trips a year. carrying 80 passengers
each voyage. II each passenger be
charged at the baSi" rate of first
class steamship travel. $3.50. the in
come would be s750. .06h. This leaves
an ample margin for all operating
and maintenance expenses.
In the opinion of Zeppelin officials.
a lO-dayround-t the world service could
he organized with airships, the
ocean jumps being made by airships.
and way points everywhere being
reached by connecting airpiane lines
For great distances. they say. the air
ship is more dependable than the air.
plane. and its safety factor is greater
as. by means of its gas content. it
has greater ability to cope with un-
favorable weather.
Combustion Danger Slight.
The danger of gas combustion
fwhen hydrogen and not helium is
uSed) is almost negligible. 1t is only
in war times, when an airship comes
under enemy fire. that its hydrogen
contents are a serious menace. Ordi-
narily. the only occasion when hydro
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