The largest airship in the world: was, is or will be?

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:45

An airship is called an aircraft, which consists of a rudder, a screw engine and a balloon. Thanks to this device, the balloon is able to move arbitrarily in the airspace, regardless of gusts and wind direction.

Long lead

For a very long time, the Hindenburg was considered the largest zeppelin in the world (190,000 m3). Named the largest airship in the world in memory of the German Reich President Paul von Hindenburg.

Its construction began in May 1931. And already in early March 1936, the ship made its first flight. By the time construction was completed, it was the largest aircraft capable of moving through the air. Its length was 245 m, the diameter at its widest part was 41.2 meters.

The airship had four Daimler-Benz LOF-6 engines with an operating power of 900 hp. s., while the maximum was 1,200 liters. s.

The Hindenburg is a rigid airship filled with flammable hydrogen. The fuel necessary for the operation of the engines (about 60 tons) was poured into tanks (2,500 liters each). The airship could lift 50 people and about 100 tons of cargo into the air. The maximum speed of the Hindenburg was 135 km/h.

The beginning of the commercial use of the airship is March 31, 1936. 37 passengers, more than 60 kg of mail and 1,200 tons of cargo left for South America.

To increase the carrying capacity, the airship had showers (instead of bathtubs) and almost everything was made of aluminum, even the piano.

By the beginning of 1937, the Hindenburg's cabin was modernized and began to accommodate 72 passengers.

Last flight began May 3, 1937. On the sixth of May, finishing the transatlantic flight and landing, the world's largest airship crashed. For some unknown reason, the hydrogen ignited, and the aircraft burst into flames. As a result of the disaster, 35 people died (in total, there were 97 passengers and crew members of the Hindenburg and one worker of the American Naval Aeronautics Base on board). The resonance was very large, although the number of victims is considered very small for a plane crash.

Today there are two versions of what happened. The first, official one, claims that the Hindenburg caught fire due to a wiring problem. The fire was provoked by a storm front, from which the zeppelin tried to escape.

The second, unofficial, put forward by an American historian, says that an explosive device detonated on one of the gas cylinders.

The most famous aircraft carrier for its size

Zeppelin called "Akron" (184,000 m3) was designed to accommodate five fighter aircraft. He was inventedin America in 1929. Its air chambers were filled with helium.

Graf Zeppelin

Graf Zeppelin also claims the title of "the largest airship in the world", which is also considered the most successful engineering project. He made over 140 flights in almost 19 years. Flights, both cargo and passengers, were carried out across the Atlantic. And in 1929, the Graf Zeppelin made a trip around the world.

It was invented in Germany in 1928. Was filled with helium.

The largest radio antenna

The largest airships in the world are not only passenger or military vehicles. The largest soft zeppelin in the world is also known - ZPG-3W (23,648 m3), which was intended for radar measurements. The entire cavity of the airship was occupied by a radio antenna. It was invented in 1950 in America. Filling - helium.

From 1958 to 1961 airships of this type made flights lasting up to 200 hours. They withstood snowfalls, fog and wind gusts up to 30 m/s.

New technologies in the sky

August 17 this year, an airship reappeared in the sky of Great Britain. Today it is the largest airship in the world. Airlander 10 is the brainchild of new technologies. It combines elements of an airplane, an airship and a helicopter.

His main ability - experts say - is a two-week unmanned flight. The airship is filled with helium. It is capable of flying with a crew on board for five days without landing, carrying about 10 tons of various cargoes. Estimated speed of Airlander 10 is about 150 km/h.

True, on the second test flight, the zeppelin hit the ground with its nose. No harm done. The developers claim that these are trifles. After fixing the bugs and new tests, the largest airship in the world (photo below) is planned to be put into production.

The idea becomes relevant again

"Hindenburg" still bears the title of "the largest airship in the world." All later balloons were significantly smaller.

The size of aeronautical ships was dictated by the need to carry a large amount of cargo in people. Moreover, passengers dreamed of flying with maximum comfort.

Therefore, the airships were equipped with cabins, lounges for entertainment, cozy restaurants. In principle, everything is like on expensive cruise liners, only by air and much faster.

Perhaps that is why the idea of creating a huge comfortable airship is always in the air. The designers believe that, in addition to speed and comfort, the carrying capacity of such vehicles plays an important role.

One of the interesting ideas was proposed by British student Mac Byers. He developed the concept of a particularly large luxury zeppelin and believes that by 2030 the idea can be realized. The ship will be called Aether.

With a design length of 250m, it will be the largest airship in the world. Interior space projectimpressive. The huge two-story hall is made in the style of "open space". From it you can go to a spacious restaurant, all the tables of which are located near the huge windows. The individual cabins are large and comfortable, the beds are double, and the bathrooms are equipped with modern fixtures. Many people think that Aether looks very much like the Hindenburg…