Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-10-12


aeronautics. as expressed in recen
public address here. the Graf Zeppelin
latest of long line of famous airships
is the fourth dirigible to essay f1igh
across the Atlantic.
General opinion has her as the third
| forgetting. as the public is wont to for
get. a pioneer effort which failed wher
Walter Wellman and the crew of the
non-rigid America came down beside
ship 1000 miles off Cape Hatteras or
an ATTEMPTED fight from Atlantic City
| to Ireland in 1910,
The second lighter than-air craft tc
brave crossing of the North Atlantic
| and the first to achieve success, was
! the British dirigible R-34, COMMANDED
bv Mai. Scott, which few from Scot
| land to New York and back to England
| in July. 1919. A German sister OF the
| Graf Zeppelin, our own Los Angeles
| then called the zR-3, was third Wnen
| DR.. Hugo Eckener and many OF inc
| prestnt crew of the Graz Zeppelin
delivered her at Lakehurst, N. j.. IN a
: oOO-ynile nonstop fight from Fried
richshafcn GERMANY, birthplace of the
/ Zeppelins.
Largest Now Existent.
There can be no argument that the
Graf Zeppelin is the largest and most
lIly1lrious craft of her kind vet to take
the air. She dw2rfs her immediate pre-
decessor by 100 feet or more IN lengtn,
and by approximately 100000 cuolc
feet of lifting gas capacity.
But q, public addicted to fresh Superla-
tives and new wonders need not be
discouraged. The airship R-101, being
completed now by the British, ecllpses
the Graf Zeppelin by about 1,5OO:O o0
cubic feet gas capacity; is designed 10
carry 100 passengers instead or 70; mas
two decks and an elevator TO the Ger
man ships one-foor "walk-up," and
will be able to carry a paltry 2o 10
80 tons more load. 4.
IT should be further consolation to
natriotic Americans that the United
States Navy has Just signed contracts
with the Goodyear Zeppelin Co. OF
Akron. Ohio, for two dirigibles as large
or larger than the R-101, which Will
Guido ANYTHING yet attempted ABROAD
bv having an airplane hangar and sew
eral planes inside their monstrous nuns.
First Commercial Flight.
The Friedrichshafen-La kehurst flight
of the Graf Zeppelin is most interest
ING nerhaps. because it constitutes the
first attempt at commercial passenger
carving by air from Europe to America.
Ten passenger cabins with two nertns
each in the after part OF the giant
Zeppelin's control car provide accom-
modations for 20 passengers.
Not all of the passages Tor the nignt
to America were sold to the general
public-political and business reasons,
no doubt, put most of the alrships
European passengers aboard-pu! among
those able to obtain the coveted trans
atlantic tickets were four Americans,
who Jumped at the opportunity to pay
$4. 900 each for the ride. II the Graz
Zeppelin should be put into regular:
or even an irregular, service back ana
forth over the Atlantic, as has been
suggested, it is likely these rates would
suffer A reduction, but compared 10 the
nrices paid by ordinary ocean travellers
for nalatial suites on the fastest liners
they are far from seeming exnorDltant.
From a scientific point OF view the
fight is probably most interesting De-
cause the "Blau gas" used Tor fuei Is
a radical departure from past practlce
in airship operation This gas, or
mixture of gases, is only a little heavier
Llla0 HlT anu SO duOo dCbAN&iAy AAot@A
ing to the weight of the airShip. The
result is that the lift, ordinarily ex-
pended on raising sufficient gasoline
to take the eiirigible to its destination
is utilized on the Graf Zeppelin in ad-
ditional weight of passengers and car
go. It's use presents certain problems
in space within tho hull, but Dr.. Eek
ener believes the advantages gained far
outweigh these difficulties.
Gas Heavier Than Air.
The "Blau gas" Intentionally was
made q little heavier than air for two
purposes: so that it would flow by
gravity to the motors and in order that
its consumption would compensate for
the inevitable Seepage of buoyant n.y.
drogen that occurs on an airship flight
Although the new fuel is called blue
gas" its English name is not derived
from the apparent translation, but from
the name of the man who developed it.
Herman Blau, chemist of Augsburg
Germany
1t is also interesting that 1000. 900
cubic feet of an American substitute
for the German gas, developed by
cracking natural gas at plant in
Kentucky, has long been waiting for
the Graf Zeppelin at the Lakehurst
Naval Air Station, and that DIR. Eek
ener has said he believed this fuel
would prove even more satisfactory than
the "Blau gas" obtained in Germany.
Use OF the gaseous fuel. however, was
not determined upon without serious
opposition from certain sources in the
German air ministry, and it is certain
that a series of Il told you SOS" would
follow upon any mishap ct all trace
able to use of the blue gas." About
eight tons of liquid fuel (benzol mix
ture) is regularly carried by the Graf
Zeppelin, even when using blue gas
for fuel. for the double purpose OF
ballast that may be iettisoned and as
emergency fuel should motors. that
SO far have functioned perfectly on
either diet, halk en- their gaseous ra-
items
Engines Uses Either Fuel.
The engines themselves, in addition
TO performing equally well on benzol
or p!ue gas" are worthy of special
comment because they are directly re-
verslble for purposes of maneuvering
the airship. Their propellers need no
heavy gears in order to make them
push instead Of pull; this Is accom-
plished by changing the position of the
cam shaft and thus the timing of the
motors so that they actually run back
! ward.
The Graf Zeppelin is driven by five