Goodyear Airdock
Goodyear Airdock | |
Akron Fulton International Airport, Akron, Ohio | |
Coordinates | 41°1′55″N 81°28′15″W / 41.03194°N 81.47083°W |
---|---|
Built | 1929/30 |
Architect | Karl Arnstein, Paul K. Helma, Wilbur J. Watson |
NRHP reference No. | 73002259 [1] |
Added to NRHP | April 11, 1973 |
The Goodyear Airdock is a construction and storage airship hangar in Akron, Ohio. At its completion in 1929, it was the largest building in the world without interior supports.
Description
The building has a unique shape which has been described as "half a silkworm's cocoon, cut in half the long way." It is 1,175 feet (358 m) long, 325 feet (99 m) wide, and 211 feet (64 m) high, supported by 13 steel arches. There is 364,000 square feet (34 000 m2) of unobstructed floor space, or an area larger than 8 football fields side-by-side. The airdock has a volume of 55 million cubic feet (or about 1.5 million cubic meters). A control tower and radio aerial sit at its northeast end. At each end of the building are two huge semi-spherical doors that each weigh 600 tons (544 000 kg). At the top, the doors are fastened by hollow forged pins 17 inches (43 cm) in diameter and six feet (1.8 m) long. The doors roll on 40 wheels along specially-designed curved railroad tracks, each powered by an individual power plant that can open the doors in about 5 minutes.[2]
The airdock is so large that temperature changes within the structure can be very different from that on the outside of the structure. To accommodate these fluctuations, which could cause structural damage, a row of 12 windows 100 feet (30 m) off the ground was installed. Furthermore, the entire structure is mounted on rollers to compensate for expansion or contraction resulting from temperature changes. When the humidity is high in the Airdock, a sudden change in temperature causes condensation. This condensation falls in a mist, creating the illusion of rain, according to the designer.[3][4]
History
In 1929, Goodyear Zeppelin Corporation, later
Construction took place from April 20 to November 25, 1929, at a cost of $2.2 million (equivalent to $30.74 million in 2023[7]).
The first two airships to be constructed and launched at the airdock were USS Akron, in 1931, and its sister ship, USS Macon.
When
In 1980, the Goodyear Airdock was designated a
The airdock served as the site of the 1986 kickoff rally for the
In 1987, the Loral Corporation purchased Goodyear Aerospace and the Goodyear Airdock as a result of James Goldsmith's greenmailing of Goodyear. The Loral Corporation (and its holdings, including the Goodyear Airdock) was purchased by Lockheed Martin in 1996.
As of 2021[update] California company LTA Research and Exploration, together with the University of Akron, plans to use the airdock to develop electric-powered airships.[9]
The airdock is not open to the public, but it can be seen by those traveling on U.S. Route 224 east of downtown Akron.
See also
- Airship hangar
- Hangar No. 1, Lakehurst Naval Air Station
- Hangar One (Mountain View, California)
- Weeksville Dirigible Hangar
- Bartolomeu de Gusmão Airport
- MCAS Tustin
References
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
- ^ "A Nine Acre Nest For Dirigibles." Popular Science Monthly, September 1929, p. 20.
- ^ O'Dell, Joanne (2007-05-21). "Airdock". Summit County Myths wiki. Akron-Summit County Public Library. Retrieved 2007-09-24.
- ^ Schleis, Paula (2003-09-23). "Does it rain in there?". Akron Beacon Journal. p. A8.
- ^ Akron-Summit County Public Library. "Goodyear-Zeppelin Corporation, Facts About the World's Largest Airship Factory & Dock". Retrieved 2008-11-15.
- ISBN 978-3-95908-482-6.
- Gross Domestic Product deflatorfigures follow the MeasuringWorth series.
- ^ Johnson, Melissa (September 14, 1986). "All were on the guest list, and nearly everyone came". The Akron Beacon Journal. p. 1.
- ^ Mackinnon, Jim (March 5, 2021). "Google co-founder's company to use Akron Airdock for state-of-art airship development". Akron Beacon Journal. Retrieved March 6, 2021.
External links
- Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. OH-57, "Goodyear Airdock, 1210 Massillon Road, Akron, Summit County, OH", 30 photos, 4 color transparencies, 2 data pages, 3 photo caption pages
- National Park Service history of the Goodyear Airdock
- Facts and figures
- Aviation: From Sand Dunes to Sonic Booms, a National Park Service Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary
- Ohio and Erie Canal National Heritage Corridor, a National Park Service Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary