Traveling deep into the heart of Ohio isn't high on our list, given how many C/D staffers associate with a certain Michigan university local to our Ann Arbor offices, but we made an exception to see something truly special: the latest Goodyear blimp. The iconic tire and rubber company unveiled the new airship in one of its giant hangars outside of Akron, Ohio, and while it might look similar to the familiar model it eventually will replace, it's a whole new animal.
In creating its first all-new blimp in more than 40 years, Goodyear changed up the design and engaged Zeppelin, a German company specializing in zeppelin-style airships. So it's not really surprising to learn the new Goodyear blimp is, in fact, a zeppelin. (For those not in the know, blimps are essentially contoured balloons, while zeppelins feature skin-wrapped airframes.) Zepplins were hugely popular in the early 20th century, and were used for everything from trans-Atlantic travel to bombers and spying platforms during the World Wars. Perhaps the most famous zeppelin of them all, of course, famously crashed in a massive hydrogen-fueled fireball.
Unlike the Hindenburg, the Goodyear ship uses helium for lift—as did its predecessor—and its transition to zeppelin-dom nets it a variety of performance improvements, the most noticeable being speed. Goodyear says the new ship can hit 73 mph, as opposed to the blimp's 50-mph top speed, thanks to a trio of vectored engines pumping out 200 horsepower each. (The blimp made do with two 210-hp "pusher" motors.) The engines also are quieter than the blimp's units by about 45 dB, and they're now mounted to the sides of the zeppelin's aluminum-and-carbon-fiber frame instead of the passenger gondola.
Those body-mounted "vectored" engines, which can tilt up or down to adjust altitude, enable more-controlled hovers, landings, and takeoffs. We're told maneuverability is way up, and the big airship can be steered far more precisely. If you can believe it, the Goodyear ship's overall size actually increases, from 192 feet in length to a colossal 246 feet. Width has increased by 15 feet to 65, and the body's volume has swelled 94,827 cubic feet to 297,527—that's a lot of extra space for helium. Similar to the majority of new cars we cover, the zeppelin is heavier than the blimp it replaces—by 6940 pounds—but it can now transport up to 14 people, seven more than the blimp.
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While we weren't able to take a ride in Goodyear's latest pride and joy, you can expect to see it at a sporting event or big race near you soon. Goodyear is hoping to have its new ship FAA-certified by this summer, when it will join two of the old blimps in the company's fleet. Those two other rigs will be phased out over the next two to four years as more of the new-design zeppelins are produced. One thing's for sure: As impressive as these airships are in the sky, seeing them up close, on the ground, and in a giant hangar is an eye-opening experience. Maybe we can get Goodyear to let us do instrumented testing on one . . .
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