New Britain herald., 1930-10-20
NEW NAVY A!RSH|P
 LIKE DREADNAUGHT
"Akron', to Garry Five Planes
 and IS Machine Guns

Akron O., Oct. 20 - While Great Britain mourns the loss of the R-101, the worlds largest airship, and strives to find out just why the great ship was destroyed, Goodyear Zeppelin mechanics here are steadi- ly bringing to completion a giant Of the skies that will be larger, safer and faster than any airship yet | built.
 This is the ZRS-4. scheduled to | be delivered 10 the L. s. Navy in May, when it will be christened the Akron.
 It will be a monster of 6,500, ,o00 cubic feet-far larger than the ill- fated R-101, or the R-10O, Eng lands other superairship. Unlike those ships, built for commercial uses, it is to be strictly fighting craft, and it will be the most pow erful fighter that ever took the air.
 Its huge skeleton is rapidly talk ing form here, rising high over head like the framework of some pI IL lllSllillllOlll. " lltll IL To completed it will have these un- usual features:
 1. The Akron will he nearly three times the size of the Los Angles, the navys present air ship, twice the size Of the Graf Zeppelin and, although not much longer, far greater in power. speed and range than Great Britain's R-1O0 and R-1O1. 2. Eight powerful Maybach engines, with a total of nearly 45o0 horsepower, will enable the ship to reach a maximum speed of | 72 knots. or SS land miles an hour, faster than any other air
 ship Set inside the hull and combined with tiltable propellors- that will enable the ship to climn at the rate of 2.00o feet minute, while moving forward at a speed of so miles an hour-much faster tran any airplane could make the same altitude.
 Can Carry Five Planes 3. A hangar built within the hull will accommodate five air | planes of the pursuit or observa.t < ton type, to be taken up or let out through a T-shaped hatchwav | beneath by means of a secret l trapeze arrangement.
 4. Sixteen 5O-calibar rapid fire, high-pressure guns will be mounted at strategic points about the ship, according to Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Aero nautics David S. Ingalls,. These guns, if operated ashore, would | have useful range of about 45O0 yards, or nearly three miles. They can fire about 500 bullets minute. 5. Carrying 60 tons of fuel, the Akron will be able to cruise. with out landing or refueling, at a speed of nearly GO miles an hour, as far as 9,2O0 nautical miles. or about | 11,OO0 land mles-nearly half the distance around the earth, double the range of the most modern sur face scouting cruiser.
 | 6. It will be the safest airship afloat, since it will have helium the non on-inflammable gas, as its lifting force: will be more stur- | dily built: will be divided into 12 compartments containing individ- ual gas cells ranging in size from | S0,O00 to nearly a million cubic feet; will be accessible by means of corridors along both sides and along the top; and will be almost invulnerable to anti-aircraft or oth- CT gun fire.
 7. It's radio equipment will in clude two powerful transmitters, i covering the intermediate and high | frequency ranges, receivers cover ing all ranges, two trailing antennas and 2, fixed antenna. a radio com pass and radio facsimile transmit ter and receiver for the transmits sion of sketches, maps and similar information. The transm'tter will have a range of at least 5000 nauti- cal miles. or one-third the distance around the earth.
 i s. A special dock for the con-