AMERICA IX THE AIR 



351 



structed in Germany has proved its great 

 usefulness, both in war and peace. 



Originally devised for reconnaissance 

 and observation over the North Sea, 

 these great airships were used for bom- 

 bardment even against England and 

 France, and did a great deal of work over 

 Russia during the war. In fact, one made 

 a non-stop flight of over 4,000 miles, to 

 German East Africa and back again to 

 Europe. On account of their ability to 

 remain at very high altitudes, compara- 

 tively few were damaged or destroyed by 

 airplanes. 



At the end of the war the Germans had 

 one airship, the L-72, that was designed 

 to attack New York. This ship had a 

 fuel capacity of about 17,000 miles, and 

 was designed to be able to maintain itself 

 at a height of 30,000 feet, with crews pro- 

 vided with oxygen apparatus and the en- 

 gines arranged to be kept warm at this 

 great height, which it was then impossi- 

 ble for airplanes to reach. 



Had she appeared over New York and 

 bombarded that city, there would have 

 been absolutely no defense against her 

 whatever, and this airship could have 

 come down to any height desired. 



The French now have this airship in a 

 hangar in the southern part of France 

 and are allowing their engineers to obtain 

 all the technical data from her with a 

 view to building new ones. 



When a nation or organization has de- 

 veloped airships of this kind and worked 

 for years on them, it is a very difficult 

 matter for any other organizations to 

 catch up with them and be able to con- 

 struct as good ones for many years. This 

 is on account of the engineering and 

 structural difficulties encountered. 



AN AIRSHIP CARRYING 20 TONS CAN 

 TRAVEL 90 MILKS AN HOUR 



In a military way, a nation needs air- 

 ships for reconnaissance at a great dis- 

 tance, over the land or over the water. 

 They are needed for attacking hostile air- 

 ships, for dropping explosives against 

 targets on land or water. A large airship 

 can carry 200 fully equipped infantrymen 

 and drop them off in parachutes if neces- 

 sary ; also, it can act as a means of trans- 

 port for army units or other air units. 



As a large airship can transport 20 tons 



or more at a speed of 70 to 90 miles an 

 hour, more points can be reached than 

 would be possible in other ways. In fact, 

 in most places in the United States today, 

 with the roads that we have, it would be 

 impossible to supply an army of any size 

 over them ; and as railroads exist only in 

 certain places, airships will be the natural 

 means of supply and should be developed 

 accordingly. 



For commercial purposes the air- 

 ship offers very interesting possibilities. 

 There is no dust or smoke or unpleasant 

 experience in traveling by them. The 

 degree of safety, with a proper ground 

 organization of airship stations, is very 

 great. In fact, the Germans have carried 

 over 200,000 passengers without a fa- 

 tality. 



For communication across the Pacific, 

 or particularly to South America, air- 

 ships will be a very efficient means of 

 travel. 



When we turn to airplanes and com- 

 mercial possibilities we are immediately 

 concerned with the high cost of the nec- 

 essary ground organization. Due to their 

 limited gas capacity and the fact that 

 their engines must be running at all times 

 to stay in the air, being heavier-than-air. 

 every provision has to be made for guid- 

 ing them properly across the country and 

 having airdromes, or landing places, at 

 convenient intervals. An organization of 

 this kind we call airways, and without it 

 no real commercial development of avia- 

 tion is possible. 



These airways should be established by 

 the government; should join the principal 

 centers of population by well-marked 

 routes through the country, and provide 

 airdromes at 200-mile intervals, where 

 facilities for repair, fuel, and proper at- 

 tendants on the airplanes can be obtained. 

 Between these places emergency landing- 

 places should be distinctly marked, so 

 that a landing could be safely made if 

 trouble occurred. 



Of course, this seems impracticable 

 from the standpoint of cost; but when 

 one considers that automobiles have to 

 have roads everywhere they go and gas 

 stations from which they can get oil and 

 gasoline, one concludes that the estab- 

 lishment of airways through the country 

 would be not nearly as expensive and 



