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Airship hangars (also known as airship sheds) are large specialized buildings that are used for sheltering airships during construction, maintenance and storage. Rigid airships always needed to be based in airship hangars because weathering was a serious risk.

History

Early hangars

The first real airship hangar was built as Hangar "Y" at Chalais-Meudon near Paris in 1879 where the engineers Charles Renard and Arthur Constantin Krebs constructed their first airship "La France". Hangar "Y" is one of the few remaining airship hangars in Europe.

The construction of the first operational rigid airship LZ1 by Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin started in 1899 in a floating hangar on Lake Constance at Manzell today part of Friedrichshafen. The floating hangar turned into the direction of the wind on its own and so it was easier to move the airship into the hangar exactly against the wind.

For the same reason later rotating hangars were built at Biesdorf (today part of Berlin) and at the Nordholz Airbase, to the south of Cuxhaven in Germany. Already before the First World War there were transportable tent constructions as hangars for smaller airships. They were quite common in the US at fairgrounds or exhibitions. The American Melvin Vaniman constructed big tent hangars in France particularly for the French army.

The Zeppelin programme

Zeppelin Hangar, Bartolomeu de Gusmão Airport, Santa Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

With the construction of Zeppelin LZ1 the era of big rigid airships started in Germany and for this very big airship hangars were necessary. This development started at the Zeppelin plant in Friedrichshafen before the First World War, continued through the war with dozens of hangars for construction of big rigid airships and their operation all over Germany and the occupied territories. In the 1920s and 30s even bigger hangars for the new Hindenburg-class airships were built at Friedrichshafen, Frankfurt and at Bartolomeu de Gusmão Airport, Santa Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the only Zeppelin airship hangar of all those built which still exists^[1]

UK airship construction

Hangars of the former Royal Airship Works at Cardington, Bedfordshire, England, 2013

There was also an airship program in the UK. This required the big construction sheds in Barrow-in-Furness, Inchinnan, Barlow and Cardington, and the rigid airship war stations at Longside, East Fortune, Howden, Pulham (Norfolk) and Kingsnorth.

Today, only the two hangars of the former Royal Airship Works in Cardington, Bedfordshire, where the R101 was built, remain. The No.1 Cardington hangar is original, but extended; the No.2 hangar was relocated to Cardington from Pulham in 1928.^[2]

In 1924, the Imperial Airship Communications scheme planned to extend mail and passenger service to British India, so an 859-foot hangar was constructed at Karachi (now in Pakistan) in 1929. This was the intended destination of the R101.^[3]

France

In France few big hangars had been built, because there was only one attempt to build a rigid airship. Nevertheless, at the end of the First World War an airship station for rigid airships was built in Cuers-Pierrefeu by adding the parts of smaller hangars to two big ones.

At Paris-Orly Airport two concrete hangars were built between 1923 and 1926. Planned by the engineer Eugene Freyssinet, the 300 metre-long buildings were an important innovation according to the construction and aesthetic of the design. None of the big French hangars exist anymore, while a few smaller ones still are there (see Ecausseville, Calvados for a surviving example).

United States

A view of six US Navy blimps in one of the two hangars located at NAS Santa Ana, California

In the United States the Navy began producing non-rigid airships during World War I. The Wingfoot Lake Airship Hangar in Suffield, Ohio was constructed in 1917 by the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company for the production of non-rigid airships and training. Hangar No 1 at Lakehurst Naval Airship Station was built in 1921 to house the Navy's future rigid airships. Additional hangars, which housed the USS Akron (ZRS-4) and USS Macon (ZRS-5), exist in Akron, Ohio (the Goodyear Airdock, 1929) and Sunnyvale, California (Hangar One, Moffett Federal Airfield, 1932). The ships were constructed in Akron. The Akron was based in Lakehurst while the Macon was based at Moffett Field. During World War II, seventeen large hangars were built to house US Navy blimps. Today, five of these wooden hangars still exist: Moffett Field (1), Tustin, California (1), Tillamook, Oregon (1), Lakehurst, New Jersey (2).

Post World War hangars

After the Second World War worldwide only one big airship shed had been built: The one in Brand south of Berlin for the construction of the Cargolifter AG airship. With a length of 360 metres (1,180 ft), a width of 210 metres (690 ft) and a height of 107 metres (351 ft), it is one of the largest structures in the world without interior support structures. After the bankruptcy of Cargolifter AG it was converted into the leisure center "Tropical Islands".

For the needs of the rather small blimps quite a number of mostly simple hangars exist around the world today.

References

Notes

^ Zeppelin Hangar
^ Bowyer (1983): Pp 94–100.
^ "Karachi's Airship Hangar". 9 December 2010.

Bibliography

Bowyer, Michael J.F. (1983). Action Stations, Volume 6, Military airfields of the Cotswolds and the Central Midlands. Cambridge: Patrick Stephens. ISBN 0-85059-529-0.

External links

(in French) Le Hangar à Dirigeables d'Ecausseville
Hangar of Shanghai Vantage Airship Manufacture Company Limited China
Hangar Team Augusta Italy
The Airship Heritage Trust Cardington UK
Navy Lakehurst Historical Society USA
Cuers-Pierrefeu Airdrome, Cuers, France
"Dirigible Hangar Rotates To Reduce Wind Peril" Popular Science, May 1935, futuristic idea on dirigible hangars for airline service

[1] Zeppelin Hangar

[bowyer-2] Bowyer (1983): Pp 94–100.

[3] "Karachi's Airship Hangar". 9 December 2010.

[1]

[2]

[3]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-'''Airship hangars''' are specialized buildings that are used for sheltering airships during construction, maintenance and storage. [[Rigid airship]]s always needed to be based in airship [[hangar]]s because weathering was a serious risk.
+{{Short description|Large buildings used for sheltering airships}}
+'''Airship hangars''' (also known as '''airship sheds''') are large specialized buildings that are used for sheltering airships during construction, maintenance and storage. [[Rigid airship]]s always needed to be based in airship [[hangar]]s because weathering was a serious risk.
 == History ==
 === Early hangars ===
-[[Image:Chalais Meudon 2002.jpg|thumb|Hangar Y, Chalais Meudon near Paris, France 2002]]
+[[Image:Chalais Meudon 2002.jpg|thumb|Hangar Y, Chalais-Meudon near Paris, France 2002]]
-The first real airship hangar was built as Hangar “Y” at Chalais Meudon near Paris in 1879 where the engineers [[Charles Renard]] and [[Arthur Constantin Krebs]] constructed their first airship “[[La France (airship)|La France]]”.
+The first real airship hangar was built as Hangar "Y" at [[Chalais-Meudon]] near Paris in 1879 where the engineers [[Charles Renard]] and [[Arthur Constantin Krebs]] constructed their first airship "[[La France (airship)|La France]]".
-Hangar “Y” is one of the few remaining airship hangars in Europe.
+Hangar "Y" is one of the few remaining airship hangars in Europe.
 The construction of the first operational [[rigid airship]] LZ1 by Count [[Ferdinand von Zeppelin]] started in 1899 in a floating hangar on [[Lake Constance]] at Manzell today part of [[Friedrichshafen]]. The floating hangar turned into the direction of the wind  on its own and so it was easier to move the airship into the hangar exactly against the wind.
@@ Line 17: / Line 18: @@
 With the construction of [[Zeppelin LZ1]] the era of big rigid airships started in Germany and for this very big airship hangars were necessary.
-This development started at the Zeppelin plant in [[Friedrichshafen]] before the First World War, continued through the war with dozens of hangars for construction of big [[rigid airship]]s and their operation all over Germany and the occupied territories. In the 1920s and 30s even bigger hangars for the new [[LZ 129 Hindenburg]] class airships were built at Friedrichshafen, [[Frankfurt]] and at [[Bartolomeu de Gusmão Airport]], [[Santa Cruz, Rio de Janeiro|Santa Cruz]], [[Rio de Janeiro]], [[Brazil]], the only [[Zeppelin]] airship hangar of all those built which still exists<ref>[[:pt:Hangar do Zeppelin|Zeppelin Hangar]]</ref>
+This development started at the Zeppelin plant in [[Friedrichshafen]] before the First World War, continued through the war with dozens of hangars for construction of big [[rigid airship]]s and their operation all over Germany and the occupied territories. In the 1920s and 30s even bigger hangars for the new [[Hindenburg-class airship|''Hindenburg''-class airships]] were built at Friedrichshafen, [[Frankfurt]] and at [[Bartolomeu de Gusmão Airport]], [[Santa Cruz, Rio de Janeiro|Santa Cruz]], [[Rio de Janeiro]], [[Brazil]], the only [[Zeppelin]] airship hangar of all those built which still exists<ref>[[:pt:Hangar do Zeppelin|Zeppelin Hangar]]</ref>
 === UK airship construction ===
-[[Image:RAF-Cardington01-full.jpg|thumb|Hangars of the former Royal Airship Works at Cardington [[Bedfordshire]], England 2013]]
+[[File:RAF-Cardington01-full.jpg|thumb|Hangars of the former Royal Airship Works at Cardington, [[Bedfordshire]], England, 2013]]
-Also in the UK there was a rigid airship program during the First World War. This required the big construction sheds in [[Barrow-in-Furness]], [[Inchinnan]], [[Barlow, North Yorkshire|Barlow]] and [[Cardington, Bedfordshire|Cardington]] and the rigid airship war stations at Longside, [[East Fortune]], [[RNAS Howden|Howden]], [[RNAS Pulham|Pulham]] (Norfolk) and [[Kingsnorth]].
+There was also an airship program in the UK. This required the big construction sheds in [[Barrow-in-Furness]], [[Inchinnan]], [[Barlow, North Yorkshire|Barlow]] and [[Cardington, Bedfordshire|Cardington]], and the rigid airship war stations at Longside, [[East Fortune]], [[RNAS Howden|Howden]], [[RNAS Pulham|Pulham]] (Norfolk) and [[Kingsnorth]].
-[[Image:Airship Hangar.jpg|thumb|The reconstructed Airship Hangar at [[Farnborough Airfield|Farnborough]]]]
+[[File:Airship Hangar.jpg|thumb|The reconstructed Airship Hangar at [[Farnborough Airfield|Farnborough]]]]
-Today, only the two imposing Hangars of the former Royal Airship Works,  in [[Cardington, Bedfordshire|Cardington]], [[Bedfordshire]] remain, where the [[R101]] was built. The No.1 Cardington hangar is original, but extended; the No.2 hangar was relocated to Cardington from Pulham in 1928.<ref name=bowyer>Bowyer (1983): Pp 94-100.</ref>
+Today, only the two hangars of the former Royal Airship Works in [[Cardington, Bedfordshire]], where the [[R101]] was built, remain. The No.1 Cardington hangar is original, but extended; the No.2 hangar was relocated to Cardington from Pulham in 1928.<ref name=bowyer>Bowyer (1983): Pp 94–100.</ref>
-In 1924, the Imperial Airship Communications scheme planned to extend mail and passenger service to British India, so an 859-foot hangar was constructed at [[Karachi]] (now in Pakistan) in 1929. This was the intended destination of the [[R101]].<ref>http://pakistaniat.com/2010/12/08/the-airship-hangar-in-pakistan</ref>
+In 1924, the Imperial Airship Communications scheme planned to extend mail and passenger service to British India, so an 859-foot hangar was constructed at [[Karachi]] (now in Pakistan) in 1929. This was the intended destination of the R101.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://pakistaniat.com/2010/12/08/the-airship-hangar-in-pakistan|title = Karachi's Airship Hangar|date = 9 December 2010}}</ref>
 === France ===
-In [[France]] few big hangars had been built, because with the “Spies” there was only one attempt to build a rigid airship. Nevertheless, at the end of the [[First World War]] an [[airship]] station for [[rigid airship]]s was built in [[Cuers]]-Pierrefeu by adding the parts of smaller hangars to two big ones.
+In France few big hangars had been built, because there was only one attempt to build a rigid airship. Nevertheless, at the end of the [[First World War]] an [[airship]] station for [[rigid airship]]s was built in [[Cuers]]-Pierrefeu by adding the parts of smaller hangars to two big ones.
-At [[Paris-Orly Airport]] two concrete hangars were built between 1923 and 1926. Planned by the famous engineer [[Eugene Freyssinet]], the 300 metre-long buildings were  an important innovation according to the construction and aesthetic of the design.
+At [[Paris-Orly Airport]] two concrete hangars were built between 1923 and 1926. Planned by the engineer [[Eugene Freyssinet]], the 300 metre-long buildings were  an important innovation according to the construction and aesthetic of the design. None of the big French hangars exist anymore, while a few smaller ones still are there (see Ecausseville, Calvados for a surviving example).
-None of the big French hangars exist anymore, while a few smaller ones still are there.
 === United States ===
-[[Image:mcastustin1.jpg|thumb|right|A view of six [[helium]]-filled blimps being stored in one of the two massive [[hangar]]s located at [[Marine Corps Air Station Tustin|NAS Santa Ana,California]] ]]
+[[File:mcastustin1.jpg|thumb|right|A view of six US Navy blimps in one of the two [[hangar]]s located at [[Marine Corps Air Station Tustin|NAS Santa Ana, California]] ]]
-[[Image:Tustin Blimp Hangar No 2.jpg|thumb|right|''Hangar No. 2'' at the former [[Marine Corps Air Station Tustin]] ]]
+[[File:Tustin Blimp Hangar No 2.jpg|thumb|right|''Hangar No. 2'' at the former [[Marine Corps Air Station Tustin]]]]
+[[FILE:80th LTA Hangar.jpg|thumb|LTA Hangar built by African American [[Seabee]]s of the 80th Naval Construction Battalion at [[Carlsen Air Force Base|Carlsen Field]] [[Trinidad]], [[British West Indies|
+B.W.I.]] for ZP-51 of Fleet Airship Wing 5 in 1943]]
-In the United States the Navy began producing non-rigid airships during [[World War I]]. The Wingfoot Lake Hangar in [[Suffield, Ohio]] was constructed in 1917 by the [[Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company]] for the production of non-rigid airships and training. [[Hangar No. 1, Lakehurst Naval Air Station|Hangar No 1]] at [[Naval Air Engineering Station Lakehurst|Lakehurst]] Naval Airship Station was built in 1921 to house the Navy's future rigid airships. Additional hangars, which housed the {{USS|Akron|ZRS-4}} and {{USS|Macon|ZRS-5}}, exist in [[Akron, Ohio]] (the [[Goodyear Airdock]], 1929) and [[Sunnyvale, California]] ([[Moffett Federal Airfield#Hangar_One|Hangar One, Moffett Federal Airfield]], 1932).  The ships were constructed in Akron. The Akron was based in Lakehurst while the Macon was based at Moffett Field. During [[World War II]], seventeen large hangars were built to house US Navy blimps. Today, eight of these wooden hangars still exist: Moffett Field (2), Tustin, California (2), Tillamook, Oregon (1), Lakehurst, New Jersey (2), and Weeksville, North Carolina (1).
+In the United States the Navy began producing non-rigid airships during [[World War I]]. The [[Wingfoot Lake Airship Hangar]] in [[Suffield, Ohio]] was constructed in 1917 by the [[Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company]] for the production of non-rigid airships and training. [[Hangar No. 1, Lakehurst Naval Air Station|Hangar No 1]] at [[Naval Air Engineering Station Lakehurst|Lakehurst]] Naval Airship Station was built in 1921 to house the Navy's future rigid airships. Additional hangars, which housed the {{USS|Akron|ZRS-4}} and {{USS|Macon|ZRS-5}}, exist in [[Akron, Ohio]] (the [[Goodyear Airdock]], 1929) and [[Sunnyvale, California]] ([[Moffett Federal Airfield#Hangar One|Hangar One, Moffett Federal Airfield]], 1932).  The ships were constructed in Akron. The ''Akron'' was based in Lakehurst while the ''Macon'' was based at Moffett Field. During [[World War II]], seventeen large hangars were built to house US Navy blimps. Today, five of these wooden hangars still exist: [[Moffett Federal Airfield|Moffett Field]] (1), [[Marine Corps Air Station Tustin|Tustin, California]] (1), [[Naval Air Station Tillamook|Tillamook, Oregon]] (1), [[Naval Air Station Lakehurst|Lakehurst, New Jersey]] (2).
 === Post World War hangars ===
 [[Image:Brand Cargolifter Halle.jpg|thumb|Exterior view of hangar at the former [[Brand-Briesen Airfield]], built for Cargolifter]]
-After the Second World War  worldwide only one big airship shed had been built: The one in Brand south of Berlin for the construction of the [[Cargolifter AG]] airship. With a length of 360m, a width of 210m and a height of 107m it is one of the largest unsupported structures in the world. After the bankruptcy of Cargolifter AG it was converted into the leisure center  “[[Tropical Islands]]”.
+After the Second World War  worldwide only one big airship shed had been built: The one in Brand south of Berlin for the construction of the [[Cargolifter AG]] airship. With a length of {{convert|360|m|ft}}, a width of {{convert|210|m|ft}} and a height of {{convert|107|m|ft}}, it is one of the largest structures in the world without interior support structures. After the bankruptcy of Cargolifter AG it was converted into the leisure center  "[[Tropical Islands]]".
 For the needs of the rather small blimps quite a number of mostly simple hangars exist around the world today.
@@ Line 55: / Line 57: @@
 * Manfred Bauer: ''Luftschiffhallen in Friedrichshafen.'' Friedrichshafen 1985
 * Kim Braun: ''Die Luftschiffhäfen Niedersachsens'' in ''Der Traum vom Fliegen.'' Oldenburg 2000
-* Hein Carsens: ''Schiffe am Himmel - Nordholz-Geschichte eines Luftschiffhafens.'' Bremerhaven 1997
+* Hein Carsens: ''Schiffe am Himmel – Nordholz-Geschichte eines Luftschiffhafens.'' Bremerhaven 1997
 * Christopher Dean: ''Housing the Airship.'' London 1989
+* Roland Fuhrmann: ''Dresden's gateway to the skies: the world's first streamlined airship hangar and its influence on architectural history.'' Dresden 2019 (536 pp., 770 figs.)
 * Lassalle Maryse: ''Bases pour dirigeables.'' Aix-en-Provence, France 2005
 * John Provan: ''The German Airship Sheds.'' Kelkheim 1988
@@ Line 62: / Line 65: @@
 * John Provan: ''Die französischen Luftschiffhallen.'' Kelkheim 1989
 * James R. Schock: ''American Airship Bases and Facilities Edgewater.'' Florida, USA 1996
-* Dr. Fritz Strahlmann: ''Zwei deutsche Luftschiffhäfen des Weltkrieges - Ahlhorn und Wildeshausen.'' Oldenburg 1926
+* Dr. Fritz Strahlmann: ''Zwei deutsche Luftschiffhäfen des Weltkrieges – Ahlhorn und Wildeshausen.'' Oldenburg 1926
 * Michael Wulf: ''Luftschiffhallen, Dissertation, Technische Universität Carola-Wilhelmina.'' Braunschweig 1997
 ==External links==
 {{Commonscat|Airship hangars}}
-* {{fr icon}} [http://www.aerobase.fr/ Le Hangar à Dirigeables d'Ecausseville]
+* {{in lang|fr}} [http://www.aerobase.fr/ Le Hangar à Dirigeables d'Ecausseville]
 *[https://web.archive.org/web/20080515080749/http://www.vantageship.com/index2.htm Hangar of Shanghai Vantage Airship Manufacture Company Limited China]
 *[https://web.archive.org/web/20080828002233/http://www.hangarteam.insw.net/home.html Hangar Team Augusta Italy]
 *[http://www.aht.ndirect.co.uk/index.html The Airship Heritage Trust Cardington UK]
-*[http://www.nlhs.com/index.html Navy Lakehurst Historical Society USA]
+*[https://web.archive.org/web/20080422225521/http://www.nlhs.com/index.html Navy Lakehurst Historical Society USA]
 *[https://web.archive.org/web/20111003213039/http://www.warwingsart.com/LTA/cuers.html Cuers-Pierrefeu Airdrome, Cuers, France]
-*[https://books.google.com/books?id=0ikDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA37&dq=Popular+Science+1933+plane+%22Popular+Science%22&hl=en&ei=qIhiTYvJFIKC8gapppzRCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=6&ved=0CD8Q6wEwBTgy#v=onepage&q=Popular%20Science%201933%20plane%20%22Popular%20Science%22&f=true "Dirigible Hangar Rotates To Reduce Wing Peril"] ''Popular Science'', May 1935, futuristic idea on dirigible hangars for airline service
+*[https://books.google.com/books?id=0ikDAAAAMBAJ&dq=Popular+Science+1933+plane+%22Popular+Science%22&pg=PA37 "Dirigible Hangar Rotates To Reduce Wind Peril"] ''Popular Science'', May 1935, futuristic idea on dirigible hangars for airline service
 *
 {{Authority control}}
-[[Category:Aircraft hangars]]
+[[Category:Airship hangars]]
 [[Category:Airship technology|Hangar]]
 [[Category:1879 introductions]]