Stars & Stripes, N1A, in position for christening while Spirit of Akron, N4A, cruises above.
Stars & Stripes, N1A
Stars & Stripes, N1A, being christened with Sugar in the foreground
Stars & Stripes, N1A, gondola prior to christening
Aft end of Stars & Stripes, N1A, in the hangar
Stars & Stripes, N1A, in the hangar with Spirit of Akron, N4A, overhead
Sam Gibara, Goodyear CEO, signs autographs after the christening
Stars & Stripes, N1A, towed from hangar
Stars & Stripes, N1A, with Don Overs and Sugar in foreground
Old Stars & Stripes, N3A, moored to the stub bus mast
Old Stars & Stripes, N3A, on bus stub mast
Old Stars & Stripes, N3A, gondola with sugar taking advantage of the shade
Old Stars & Stripes, N3A, is sent aloft followed by Spirit of Akron so that Old Stars & Stripes can return and be put into the hangar using the main mast which had been in use by Spirit of Akron
Spirit of Akron over Wingfoot Lake Airship Base
Spirit of Akron on the mast with Sugar in the foreground
Sugar is a herding dog and was trying to herd these airships. Wouldn't it be great if she actually could. She is Australian shepherd but we could then say that she is a Goodyear blimpherd or a Lockheed-Martin blimpherd.
This is Sugar
Spirit of Akron port side with LED night sign. Captain Don McDuff stated that the starboard side of the ship is to be equipped with a new fibre optic type sign which would permit scanning and exhibiting a variety of images and messages
Spirit of Akron gondola front
Spirit of Akron port engine, 420 hp Allison turboprop, vectorable +75 deg., -30 deg.
Spirit of Akron gondola front port side
Spirit of Akron gondola port side
Spirit of Akron's sophisticated remotely controlled television camera
Spirit of Akron control console. There is no elevator wheel or rudder pedals. The control stick responds to pressure only from the pilots hands. It does not move under those pressures but causes both elevator and rudder movements. The stick also includes engine vectoring control.
Spirit of Akron rear port side of gondola
24. Home of Hugo and Knut Eckener
Friedrichshafen, 1952
25. Don Overs leaving the home of Hugo Eckener after a visit.
Friedrichshafen, March 26, 1952
This photo was taken on June 27, 1971 in a hangar at Lakehurst Naval Air Station, New Jersey. I had taken this balloon and Fred Kissell, my then balloon pilot student and owner of the balloon, there to help commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Naval Air Station. Fred Kissell has since gone on to become an accomplished pilot with hundreds of hours experience.This balloon has a 105,000 cubic foot Raven envelope. The basket is by Piccard. The burner is of four stack custom Piccard design and build. We usually flew this balloon with four fuel tanks and four people. The balloon has ascended as high as 18,000 feet and always operated well below its red line temperature.
Modern hot air ballooning was still in its near infancy in 1971, with only a few score of licensed pilots. Mike Emich, president of Balloon Flyers of Akron, counts his visit to Lakehurst in 1971 as the beginning of his active ballooning career. Mike made his first balloon ascent ever in his life there and controlled the balloon within that hangar as shown in the above photo. Mike has gone on to accumulate over 1000 hours as a balloon pilot and has established several international balloon flight records in both gas filled and hot air balloons.
Several other prominent lighter-than-air figures made what was probably their first ascent in a hot air balloon or for some their first ascent in any kind of balloon at the above event. Listed below are several of those friends and co-aeronauts who come to mind as having been there.
Frau and Herr Wolfgang von Zeppelin (grandson of Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin).
Kurt R. Stehling, fellow aeronaut, author, and early NASA pioneer.
Roger L Wolcott, fellow aeronaut and engineer (together, Roger and I made our first free balloon ascension in 1956).
Arthur H. Swanson, fellow aeronaut, and long time veteran of Goodyear Airship Operations.
James A. Contos, fellow aeronaut, lighter-than-air historian, and balloon experimenter. Jim had previously experimented on his own with hot air balloons and we had made a hot air balloon flight together in the late 1960's.
A. Dale Topping, renowned lighter-than-air historian and engineer.
Vern Smith, emeritus Goodyear airship pilot with untold thousands of flight hours challenging or possibly exceeding those of any other aeronaut or aviator. Legend has it that Vern could carve his initials in Florida beach sands with the airship nose lines.
Anthony M. Fairbanks, fellow aeronaut and balloon pilot since the 1930's.
There were undoubtedly several more that could be listed. Tony Fairbanks also exhibited La Coquette, the gas balloon used in the movie, "Around the World in Eighty Days". Herr Wolfgang von Zeppelin also controlled the balloon within the hangar while giving the Lakehurst Naval Air Station commander his first ascent in a hot air balloon.
Above left is Don Overs with the von Zeppelins and Roger Wolcott on the right with Roger controlling his first hot air balloon ascent. This was within the hangar at Lakehurst Naval Air Station during the 50th anniversary celebration on June 27, 1971.
Above are Frau and Herr Wolfgang von Zeppelin, enjoying probably their first hot air balloon ascent, within the hangar at Lakehurst Naval Air Station on June 27, 1971.
Above center is Kurt Stehling with Judy Kissell giving Vern Smith his first ascent in a hot air balloon.
Above right is Vern Smith relating his airship piloting experiences to Fred and Judy Kissell at Lakehurst NAS, June 27, 1971.
All above notes are by Don Overs.
If anyone is interested in seeing a slide show of the new Zeppelin's first flight, go to http://www.zeppelin-nt.com/news_copy(2).htm and click on "Slideshow First Flight".
Send comments to deovers@usaor.net
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