Evening star., 1924-10-13
IN TODAY'S SPOTLIGHT
BY PAUL y. COLLINS.

This week the great Zeppelin, ZR-3.
is expected to appear upon the
eastern horizon in it's transatlantic
flight from Friedrichshafen, Germany.
to Lakehurst, N. ]. 1t is larger
than the Shenandoah. having a
gas capacity of 2.472. 900 cubic feet,
| while the Shenandoah's capacity is
2115,o0o feet, though the latter is
"a feet longer than ZR-3. 1t is con-
structed for commerce and not for war
use 1t can carry bombs but has lux
urious quarters for 20 passengers.
and fittings for mail and freight.
X X x X
At the close of the war Germany
possessed many Zeppelins, but she
destroyed all but seven before the
allies could interfere. Two were as
signed to each Of three countries
England, France and Italy-and one
to Japan. The United States was not
asking for war reparations then, but
later put in an application for one
modern Zeppelin, which was granted
in the treaty of Versailles, on con-
dition that it should be constructed
solely for commerce. While awaiting
its delivery we bought from England
one that had been built by the British
after the war, but, inflated with
| hydrogen, in it's trial flight in Eng
destruction.
The practical usefulness of the
monster airships is yet to be demon
strated. They failed to meet expec-
tations in the war as bombers, but
partisans of lighter-than-a ships
claim that they will prove invaluab bic
as long distance scouts Where air
planes could not serve.
When the ZR-3 will have demon
strated it's success as a carrier OF
commerce, Great Britain Will unoer-
take to use similar ships in regu-
| lar line of subsidized traffic between
London and India. Spain Is planning
| a route between Seville and Buenos
Aires, and France a line from Paris
to her African colonies. 1t is said
| that for such transatlantic flights
there will be ships two or three
| times as great as any Zeppelin now
existing, which involves engineering
problems of construction not yet
| solved, for securing strength and
rigidity in such long reaches, with
out sacrificing buoyancy.
What use the United States will
make of the Shenandoah and ZR-3
| Is not yet announced The present
experimental trip of the Shenandoah
from Lakehurst to California and re-
turn-S,UOU mlleS-"lll OOuDlleSS ledu
to definite plans of usefulness. The
North Polar voyage of discovery of
| the unknown continent in the Arctic
| is still under consideration in the
Navy; it may be made next Summer.
| In war, scouting the ocean to detect
submarines is counted practicable.
In some conditions of the water a
submarine at great depth is clearly
discernable from a height above the
| sea-
1t has been scientifically computed
that a rigid balloon of the Zeppelin
type, having a capacity of 100000
cubic feet of gas-four times that OF
ZR-3-with a length of 100 feet and
a diameter of 1876 feet, would provide
a lift of 303.6 tons gross, or 200 tons
available for cargo, including fuel
It would have an average speed OF
Is to so miles an hour, maintained
without replenishing supplies for two
weeks OF continual travel, which
would take it almost around the
world. With favoring winds 1t
would 60 so to 100 miles an hour
and would encircle the globe with
out stopping. Airplanes must re-
| plenish fuel and oil every 500 or 60o
miles, and cannot Cross the ocean
except by short leaps from island to
island.
The most radical difference be-