No. 23r
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| Career | |
|---|---|
| Nationality |  |
| Designed | -1915 |
| Manufacturer | Vickers |
| Manufactured | 1916 |
| Maiden flight | September 19 1917[1] |
| Fate | Struck |
| General characteristics | |
| Length | 535 feet (163 metres)[1] |
| Diameter | 53 feet (16.1 metres)[1] |
| Gas type | Hydrogen |
| Gas capacity | 942,000 cubic feet (26,674.5 cubic metres)[1] |
| Disposable lift | 6.5 tons |
| Power plant | Four 250 bhp[1] Rolls-Royce engines |
| Max speed | 52 mph (83.2 km/h)[1] |
No. 23 r, also known as His Majesty's Airship 23 (HMA 23) and retroactively as R23, was the first of the British 23 Class rigid airships of World War I. While it was never used in combat, it provided many hours of valuable training and experimental data for British airship crews and designers.
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[edit] Design and construction
No. 23r had a structure similar to that of the earlier No. 9r. An extra bay was inserted amidships,[1] and the nose and tail widened allowing more gas capacity and increased lift. The exterior keel had a widened section amidships incorporating a bomb bay, sleeping quarters, radio room and toilet. Three gondolas were suspended from the keel. The fore and aft cars each contained twin swivelling propellors connected to a single engine, while the middle car contained two engines with two fixed propellers. The forward car contained the control room, but there were also emergency controls in the aft car. Ballast and fuel were carried in tanks along the keel. Rudders and elevators were of the cruciform Schütte-Lanz type. The design drawings were approved in October 1915 and a further 16 airships of the same class budgeted for. In April 1916, ten ships were approved, to be built by a further three contractors besides Vickers. However, in light of improving technology and information about German designs, only three more of this class, and two of the improved R23X class were built. The rest would be R31 class ships.
[edit] Specification
- First Flight: September 19, 1917
- Length: 535 feet (163 metres)
- Diameter: 53 ft (16.1 metres)
- Volume: 942,000 cubic feet (26,674.5 cubic metres)
- Payload: 6.5 tons (5,897 kg)
- Speed: 52 mph (83.2 km/h
- Engines: 4 x Rolls Royce 250 hp (186.4 kW)
[edit] History
Construction was commenced by Vickers on January 1 1916 at Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria. Construction was delayed by materials shortages (including the shortage of linen cause by the Easter rising in Ireland) and strikes. The trial flight took place at Barrow on September 19, 1917. The ship was found to have less than the rated lift so the dynamos, bomb gear, and furniture were removed to save weight. A 240 hp Maybach from the crashed Zeppelin L33 replaced the Rolls Royce in a new rear car, this one without emergency controls. Flew to Howden, Yorkshire, on October 15, 1917, and then to Pulham Market, Norfolk, on October 29. It flew over central London on December 6, bringing the city to a standstill and generating a wave of patriotic fervour. Despite the identification markings being clearly visible to millions of Londoners, the censors banned publication of the name of the ship. Made a record flight of 40 hours 8 minutes in May 1918, as well as experiments with defensive armament of a 2 pounder QF gun and three machine guns. The shells from the large gun caused the ground crew at Pullham some alarm when they ricochetted off the ground instead of exploding harmlessly. In July, experiments were made with dropping parasite fighters. First an unmanned, then a manned Sopwith Camel were dropped successfully from the airship. In November, the experiment was successfully completed with two other manned Camels. No. 23r overflew the surrender of the German submarine fleet at Harwich in November 1918, before being modified for experiments with the three-wire mooring system in March 1919. She was deleted in September 1919 after a total of about 320 hours.
[edit] The sister ships
- HMA 23 - Vickers
- HMA 24 - Beardmore
- HMA 25 - Armstrong Whitworth
- HMA R26 - Vickers
[edit] Notes
[edit] References
- Airships Heritage Trust, 2006, Airshipsonline : Airships : HMA 23 Class
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This article or section includes a list of references or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. You can improve this article by introducing more precise citations. |
- J.E. Morpurgo, Barnes Wallis - A Biography, Longman , 1972 ISBN 0-582-10360-6
- Ces Mowthorpe, Battlebags: British Airships of the First World War, 1995 ISBN 0-905778-13-8
- Lord Ventry and Eugene Kolesnik, Jane's Pocket Book 7 - Airship Development, 1976 ISBN 0-356-04656-7
- Lord Ventry and Eugene Kolesnik, Airship saga: The history of airships seen through the eyes of the men who designed, built, and flew them , 1982, ISBN 0-7137-1001-2
[edit] See also
Related development R26
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