H class blimp

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Infobox Aircraft
name=H class


caption=
type=Observation airship
manufacturer=Goodyear
designer=
first flight=
introduced=1921
retired=
status=
primary user=United States Navy
more users=United States Army
produced=
number built=2
variants with their own articles=

The H class blimps were observation airships built for the US Navy in the early 1920s. The design originated with a suggestion by Commander Lewis Maxfield (who was to have commanded the ZR-2, better known as the R38, and died in its crash) for a small airship which could be used either as a tethered kite balloon, or be towed by a ship until releasing its cable it would be able to scout on its own. The results was an airship similar to the later Army Motorized Kite Balloons.

Operational history

After test flights at Wingfoot Lake, the first in the class, H-1 was shipped to Rockaway in May 1921. During the summer of 1921 the H-1 completed 6 flights and, on its seventh, a hard landing pitched the crew out of the control car. H-1 free ballooned as far as Scardale, New York where a farmer was able to grab the rip cord and tie the blimp down. During the night it was deflated. The deflated H-1 was shipped back to Rockaway in time to be destroyed in the hanger fire of 31 August 1921.

A second H-type was acquired on a Navy contract but supplied directly to the US Army which operated it as the OB-1.

pecifications

aerospecs
met or eng?= eng

crew=Two
capacity=
length m=28.91
length ft=94
length in=10
span m=
span ft=
span in=
swept m=
swept ft=
swept in=
rot number=
rot dia m=
rot dia ft=
rot dia in=
dia m= 9.96
dia ft= 32
dia in= 8
height m=12.45
height ft=40
height in=10
wing area sqm=
wing area sqft=
swept area sqm=
swept area sqft=
rot area sqm=
rot area sqft=
volume m3= 1,218
volume ft3= 43,030
aspect ratio=
empty weight kg=
empty weight lb=
gross weight kg=
gross weight lb=
lift kg= 520
lift lb= 1,146

eng1 number=1
eng1 type=Lawrence L-4
eng1 kw= 45
eng1 hp= 60
eng1 kn=
eng1 lbf=
eng1 kn-ab=
eng1 lbf-ab=
eng2 number=
eng2 type=
eng2 kw=
eng2 hp=
eng2 kn=
eng2 lbf=
eng2 kn-ab=
eng2 lbf-ab=

max speed kmh=80
max speed mph=50
max speed mach=
cruise speed kmh=
cruise speed mph=
range km=640
range miles=400
endurance h= 7
endurance min=
ceiling m=1,830
ceiling ft=6,000
glide ratio=
climb rate ms=
climb rate ftmin=
sink rate ms=
sink rate ftmin=

armament1=
armament2=
armament3=
armament4=
armament5=
armament6=

References

ee also

aircontent

related=

similar aircraft=

lists=
* List of airships of the United States Navy

see also=