Evening star., 1935-02-15
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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 1925.
The Shenandoah Disaster.


The first feelings inspired by the
wreck of the Shenandoah are nat
urally those of keen regret that so
many brave men should have lost
their lives. While the nation anx-
tously awaited news of the navy
seaplane that is missing in MD
Pacific it was shocked by this
crash, at home, of the Nays giant
dirigible. The costly, handsome
and spectacular airship that yes
terday started so proudly on its
visit to the West lies now broken
thing in an Ohio corn field.
But, after all, what else could
have been expected? The history
of the dirigible balloon has been a
record of failure and death. Gov
ernments have spent fortunes on
the development of the Zeppelin.
They have never removed it's in
herent weaknesses, for these weak
nesses are embedded in the very
principle of the lighter than air
machine. The dirigible, unlike the
plane, is the easy victim of the
elements in peace and of the air.
plane IN combat. Most of the avia-
tion experts of Europe realized this
during the world war.
America should have learned
then, but the temptation to expert
ment with the big, snowy gas bags
was too much for Washington.
Since the war the government has
had many lessons but has not
needed them. 1t had the lesson in
1919 of the C-5, which was blown
in 1921 of the ZR-2, which the
United States bought from Great
Britain and which exploded at the
mouth of the Humber, killing sixty
two Americans and Englishmen. 1t
had the lesson in 1922 of the Roma,
which we bought from Italy anu
which blew up at Hampton, Vir-
ginia, killing thirty-eight. 1t had
the lesson in 1922 of the CO, which
exploded at San Antonio, Texas.
injuring seven. 1t had the lesson
In 1928 of the Tel, which was de-
stroyed by a storm at Dayton,
Ohio.
And still the Government went
on, spending millions on dirigibles
and places to keep them. 1t was
not content with getting the ZR-3.
now the Los Angeles, from Ger
many. 1t must build dirigible at
home. The Shenandoah was the
result. 1t was planned by the
Navy Department and built en-
tirely by Americans from American
material. The very latest inven-
tions in metals and fabrics were
employed. Special engines, de-
signed by a famous American
maker, were installed. Helium,
which is fireproof, was used as the
supporting gas. Everything that
money could buy or American
ingenuity offer was put into the
Shenandoah.
What could not be put into the
Shenandoah was that element of |
safety which is denied balloons.
The bags hugeness, necessary to
lifting power, makes the airship |
the prey of storm and lightning.
In January, 1924, the Shenandoah |
was torn from its mooring mast |
at Lakehurst and made the sport |
of the winds for three hours, re-
turning to it's hangar only when
the storm abated. After that the
Shenandoah seemed to atone for |
its display of weakness by making |
a flight to the Pacific coast and
back-8,100 miles in eighteen days.
This, coupled with the almost coin
cident flight of the ZR-3 from Ger
many to America, encouraged here
and there the belief that the
dirigible had become a dependable
instrument.
That brief dream is over. Once
more tragedy brings home to the
American people and the American
Government the hopelessness of ex-
pecting from Zeppelin the relia-
bility, in calm or storm, that the
airplane gives. Once more is
demonstrated the folly of the Army
and the Navy putting into expert
ments with gas bags the millions
of dollars that are sorely needed
for the development of the airplane
and the hydroplane.
It is a bitter thing that Com
mander LANsDowNE and his gall
liant men should have met this fate,
the machine to which they trusted |
themselves broken like paper in |
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