British Airships, Past, Present, and FutureWhale, George
History
British Airships, Past, Present, and Future
Whale, George
Aircraft; Airships -- Britain -- History
Ten main suspensions are incorporated in the Coastal envelope, of which
three take the handling guys, the remaining seven support the weight of
the car.
The horizontal fins with the elevator flaps, and the vertical fin with
the rudder flap, are fixed to the ridges of the envelope.
The car was evolved in the first instance by cutting away the tail
portion of two Avro seaplane fuselages and joining the forward portions
end on, the resulting car, therefore, had engines at either end with
seating accommodation for four. The landing chassis were altered,
single skids being substituted for the wider landing chassis employed
in the seaplane. The car consists of four longerons with struts
vertical and cross, and stiffened with vertical and cross bracing
wires. The sides are covered with fabric and the flooring and fairing
on the top of the car are composed of three-ply wood. In the later
cars five seats were provided to enable a second officer to be carried.
The engines are mounted on bearers at each end of the car, and the
petrol and oil tanks were originally placed adjoining the engines in
the car. At a later date various methods of carrying the petrol tanks
were adopted, in some cases they were slung from the envelope and in
others mounted on bearers above the engines.
Wireless telegraphy is fitted as is the case with all airships. In the
Coastal a gun is mounted on the top of the envelope, which is reached
by a climbing shaft passing through the envelope, another mounting
being provided on the car itself.
Bombs are also carried on frames attached to the car. Sunbeam engines
originally supplied the motive power, but at a later date a 220
horse-power Renault was fitted aft and a 100 horse-power, Berliet
forward. With the greater engine power the ship's capabilities were
considerably increased.
Exceedingly long flights were achieved by this type of ship, and those
exceeding ten hours are far too numerous to mention. The most noteworthy
of all gave a total of 24 1/4 hours, which, at the time, had only once
been surpassed by any British airship.
Towards the end of 1917, these ships, having been in commission for
over two years, were in many cases in need of a complete refit.
Several were put in order, but it was decided that this policy should
not be continued, and that as each ship was no longer fit for flying it
should be replaced by the more modern Coastal known as the C Star.
The record of one of these ships so deleted is surely worthy of special
mention. She was in commission for 2 years 75 days, and averaged for
each day of this period 3 hours 6 minutes flying. During this time she
covered upwards of 66,000 miles. From this it will be seen that she
did not pass her life by any means in idleness.
"C STAR" AIRSHIP
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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