Airships (from the French word dirigeable - controlled) are aircraft lighter than air. They are a combination of a balloon with a propulsion system (usually a screw drive with an internal combustion engine or an electric motor), as well as an attitude control system (the so-called rudders), thanks to which the airships can move in any direction regardless of the direction of wind flows. Airships have a streamlined elongated body that is filled with lift gas (hydrogen or helium), which is responsible for creating aerostatic lift.
The heyday of airships falls on the beginning of the 20th century, the period of the First World War and the time between the world wars. The First World War helped this type of technology to show itself as a weapon. The prospects for the use of airships as bombers were known in Europe even before the start of the First World War and their real use in this role. Back in 1908, the English writer H. Wells, in his book War in the Air, described how combat airships were destroying entire cities and fleets.
Unlike airplanes, airships were already a formidable operating force by the beginning of the First World War (while light reconnaissance aircraft could only carry a few small bombs). By the beginning of the war, one of the most powerful aeronautical powers was Russia, which had a large Aeronautical Park in St. Petersburg with more than 20 airships and Germany, which at that time possessed 18 aircraft of this type.
Airship "Albatross"
During the war, military airships were directly subordinate to the main command. Sometimes they were attached to fighting armies and fronts. At the very beginning of the war, airships were used in combat missions under the leadership of General Staff officers commanded on them. In this case, the airship commanders were assigned the role of watch officers. It is worth noting that thanks to the success of the Schütte-Lanz company and the successful design solutions of Count Zeppelin, Germany in the field of airship construction had a significant superiority over all other states of the world. The correct use of this advantage could bring great benefits to Germany, in particular for the implementation of deep reconnaissance. German aircraft could cover a distance of 2-4 thousand kilometers at a speed of 80-90 km / h. At the same time, the airships could bring down tons of bombs on the enemy's heads, so only the raid of one airship on August 14, 1914 on Antwerp led to the complete destruction of 60 houses, another 900 houses were damaged.
The proverb fits very well to the history of Russian airship building that the Russians are slow to harness but drive fast. In the 19th century, controlled balloons never took off into the Russian sky. Many, especially Western researchers of aeronautics, believe that this was a consequence of the backwardness of tsarist Russia, but this statement is incorrect. In Russia, almost all the necessary equipment was already being produced, as in the developed countries of Europe, but they decided to wait with airships in order not to waste government money. It was decided that it would be better to take ready-made and the most successful designs, and only then adapt them for their own purposes and the realities of operation.
Only in 1906, the contours of an airship began to emerge, which would be suitable for copying and its subsequent adaptation for use on the territory of Russia. The Main Engineering Directorate of the Russian Empire specially sent a whole delegation of engineers and specialists to France to master the most advanced experience of airship building on the spot. The choice in favor of France, and not Germany with its giant Zeppelin rising into the sky, was explained by the fact that already in those years Germany was becoming a geopolitical enemy of the Russian Empire, and all the latest German military developments and experiments were surrounded by a veil of secrecy. At the same time, there was no "total curtain" and the General Staff received information and was quite alarming through the network of agents. Such giants as the Zeppelin airships could, with one blow, mix an entire Cossack regiment with the ground or severely destroy the center of St. Petersburg.
Airship "Albatross-2" over Petrograd
It was then that the moment came when Russia needed to start acting, further delay could result in serious consequences for many military units and cities of the country. Here comes a moment when many foreign (especially German) aeronautics researchers do not say a lot, while such reservations are compared to lies. They began to consider airship construction in the Russian Empire separately from the development of aviation in general. This does not take into account the fact that the country's backwardness in the construction of airships-bombers was more than offset by the development of an air fleet of biplane aircraft armed with large-caliber machine guns. For German airships, a meeting with such aircraft (especially several) was tantamount to death.
Only this can explain the fact that the German Zeppelin never flew to Russia. Russian biplanes could fight them very effectively. For the first time in the history of aviation, Russian pilots began to use special equipment to combat giant airships: one by one approaching the target, the pilots, using their powerful machine guns, turned the airship cockpit into a sieve, after which they lost most of the command and control. In the second approach, the planes could use the latest weapon at that time - unguided incendiary missiles. Although they could be called rockets at a stretch, most of all they looked like modern firecrackers "on a stick" only of large sizes. Such missiles could set fire to an airship with a single salvo.
If we talk about Russian airships, then they were produced more on the principle of "so it was." In 1908, the very first domestic airship with the self-explanatory name "Training" took off into the sky. No outstanding results were expected from this machine at that time, since it was a full-fledged test bench. At the same time, the "Uchebny" had a decent rate of climb for those years, overtaking the "Zeppelin" indicators and was very often used for training aircraft crews.
Airship "Condor" in flight
In 1909, Russia acquired in France a semi-rigid airship, which was named "Swan". On this airship, not only their tactics of use were honed, but also the general suitability of airships for participation in hostilities. At the same time, the results obtained were disappointing. In the event that the enemy had a developed air defense, airships from an attacking force turned rather into a large target.
At this time, in the Russian army circles, the only correct decision at that time was made, which was ahead of its time. Airships were assigned only the role of air reconnaissance, which for a long time could be in the air, hovering over the front line. At the same time, bomber aviation was chosen as the main striking force (for the first time in history). It was in Russia that aeronautical engineers Sikorsky and Mozhaisky developed the world's first strategic aircraft, the Ilya Muromets bomber, which could take on board up to 500 kg. bombs. Sometimes, to increase the bomb load, some of the defensive machine guns and ammunition were removed from the ship. At the same time, these aircraft could take off in frost, fog, rain and be used for their intended purpose. It was for bomber aviation that the future was, these ships replaced airships.
Russian airships before 1917
The first Russian airship "Training". Built in 1908 in Russia. Length - 40 m, diameter - 6, 6 m, shell volume - 2,000 cubic meters. meters, diameter - 6, 6 m, maximum speed - 21 km / h.
Airship "Training"
Airship "Swan". It was acquired in France in 1909 (original name "Lebaudy", built in 1908). This was the first airship that the War Department ordered abroad. Length - 61 m, diameter - 11 m, shell volume - 4,500 cubic meters. meters, maximum speed - 36 km / h.
Airship "Swan"
Airship "Krechet". It was built in 1910 in Russia, length - 70 m, diameter - 11 m, shell volume - 6,900 cubic meters. meters, maximum speed - 43 km / h.
Airship "Krechet"
Airship "Berkut". It was acquired from France in 1910 (first name "Clement-Bayard", built in 1910). Length - 56 m, diameter - 10 m, shell volume - 3,500 cubic meters. meters, maximum speed - 54 km / h.
Airship "Berkut"
Airship "Dove". It was built in 1910 in Russia at the Izhora plant, located in Kolpino near Petrograd, according to the project of professors Van der Fleet and Boklevsky, as well as engineer V. F. Naydenov with the participation of Captain B. V. Golubov. Length - 50 m, diameter - 8 m, shell volume - 2 270 cubic meters. meters, maximum speed - 50 km / h. During the First World War, this airship performed a number of reconnaissance flights, while the "Dove" did not fly over the front line. In October 1914, it was evacuated to Lida, where the airship was dismantled, it was reassembled only in the summer of 1916, but since the airship was in an open bivouac, its shell was damaged during a storm.
Airship "Dove"
Airship "Hawk". It was produced in 1910 in Russia by the joint-stock company "Dux", located in Moscow. The designer was A. I. Shabskiy. Length - 50 m, diameter - 9 m, shell volume - 2 800 cubic meters. meters, maximum speed - 47 km / h.
Airship "Hawk"
Airship "Seagull". It was acquired in France in 1910 (the first name was "Zodiac-VIII", built in 1910). Length - 47 m, diameter - 9 m, shell volume - 2,140 cubic meters. meters, maximum speed - 47 km / h. In the same 1910, a similar airship "Zodiac-IX" was purchased in France, which was named "Korshun".
Airship "Kite"
Airship "Grif". It was purchased from Germany in 1910 (first name "Parseval PL-7", built in 1910). Length - 72 m, diameter - 14 m, shell volume - 7 600 cubic meters. meters, maximum speed - 59 km / h.
Airship "Vulture"
Airship "Forsman". It was acquired by Russia in Sweden by order of the Russian military department. This airship is the smallest in the world. It was planned to acquire a series of these small airships for intelligence service in the Russian army. Whether the airship was delivered in Russia is unknown. Due to the small volume of the airship, it did not have a gondola, instead of which a board was used to seat the pilot and mechanic, the weight of the engine with a power of 28 hp. was 38 kg. Length - 36 m, diameter - 6 m, shell volume - 800 cubic meters. meters, maximum speed - 43 km / h.
Airship "Forsman"
Airship "Kobchik". It was built in 1912 in Russia at the Duflon, Konstantinovich and Co plant, the designer was Nemchenko. Length - 45 m, diameter - 8 m, shell volume - 2,150 cubic meters. meters, maximum speed - 50 km / h.
Airship "Kobchik"
Airship "Falcon". It was built in 1912 in Russia at the Izhora plant. Length - 50 m, diameter - 9 m, shell volume - 2,500 cubic meters. meters, maximum speed - 54 km / h.
Airship "Falcon"
Airship "Albatross-II". It was created in Russia in 1913 on the basis of the Albatross airship, built at the Izhora plant in 1912. In the middle part of the airship there is an elevation - a machine gun nest. Length - 77 m, diameter - 15 m, shell volume - 9,600 cubic meters. meters, maximum speed - 68 km / h.
Airship "Albatross-II"
Airship "Condor". It was purchased in 1913 in France (the first name is "Clement-Bayard", built in 1913). Length - 88 m, diameter - 14 m, shell volume - 9,600 cubic meters. meters, maximum speed - 55 km / h.
Airship "Condor"
Airship "Parseval-II" (possibly called "Petrel"). Was purchased in Germany (first name "Parseval PL-14", built in 1913). This airship was the best in its flight characteristics among all airships that Russia had before 1915. Length - 90 m, diameter - 16 m, shell volume - 9,600 cubic meters. meters, maximum speed - 67 km / h.
Airship "Parseval-II"
Airship "Giant". It was created in 1915 in Russia by the Baltic plant in a special boathouse in the village of Salizi near Petrograd. Length - 114 m, diameter - 17 m, shell volume - 20,500 cubic meters. meters, maximum speed - 58 km / h. It was the largest airship built in the Russian Empire, but it crashed during its first flight.
Airship "Giant"
Airships "Chernomor-1" and "Chernomor-2". They were purchased from Great Britain in 1916 (first name "Coastal", built in 1916). The volume of the shell is 4,500 cubic meters. meters, maximum speed - 80 km / h. In total, 4 airships of this type were ordered, as a result, "Chernomor-1" and "Chernomor-2" performed a number of flights, "Chernomor-3" burned down in the slipway, and "Chernomor-4" was never assembled.
Airship "Chernomor"
