Hubris: The "R-101" Disaster

XXXII

The success of the R-100 on its maiden transatlantic flight caused the British Air Ministry to ramp up "The Imperial Airship Scheme." The R-100's sister, R-101 (built by the government and triumphantly called "The Socialist Ship") was supposed to have been a virtual copy of the R-100, but Lord Thomson, the Air Minister (who knew little of airships) wanted it bigger. 

R-101 ended up being 777 feet long, 50 feet longer than R-100, but only 131 feet (as opposed to 133 feet for R-100) in diameter. The Government did not consult with the builders of R-100 in creating the larger craft. She was built quickly and corners were cut to keep her within budget even as her design was expanded.

Her planned route was daunting --- from England, southeast across the continent to Egypt, and then on to Karachi (then part of India). It was also expected that her route would eventually be extended to Australia.

Like R-100 her accommodations lay all within the hull. Like R-100, her revolutionary frame structure came in for some criticism from aerodynamic engineers, and the extension of the hull was looked upon askance. There was also a very serious problem with the doped material of the envelope. Painted over, the paint and dope had chemically interacted, making the cloth brittle and prone to tearing. She had limited flight trials.

Although Air Lord Thomson was warned of all this, he dismissed the concerns of the engineers. He was insistent that R-101 fly to India, which was then in the midst of a peaceful revolution led by Mahatma Gandhi. Lord Thomson was convinced that the giant airship would impress (or frighten) the Indians into quiescence, and with the typical insouciance of an upper crust Englishman simply ignored all the advice he refused to hear.

On October 4, 1930, R-101 lifted off from England (with Air Lord Thomson aboard) and began sailing for India. Almost immediately there were engine problems. There were also indications that the weather was deteriorating, but nothing convinced the Air Lord (who, despite having no knowledge of airships, was being treated as a supercaptain) to change course or seek shelter.

As the winds rose, the doped cover of the airship began to peel backward from the bow like a banana, and the ship lost momentum and lift. As it flew through a local thunderstorm around 2:30 A.M on the 5th, a lightning bolt struck the now-exposed framing, and the ship, already struggling with altitude and attitude problems, was rammed into the ground. She exploded spectacularly, killing 48 of the 54 people aboard, including the insufferable Air Lord Thomson. She crashed outside Allone, France, about 150 miles from the English Channel.

The destruction of R-101 put an end to the "Imperial Airship Scheme" and R-100 was mothballed and eventually scrapped. Some of the Duralumin of R-101 was bought as salvage by DELAG and was used in building the Hindenburg.

 

The British-built R-38 was designed for World War I patrol service over the North Sea, but the war ended before she flew. After the war, the British sold her to the United States, who designated her ZR-2. Prior to her U.S. delivery, and while on a test flight over the Humber Estuary on August 23, 1921, she suffered a catastrophic structural collapse. She crashed and burned, costing 44 of the 49 lives on board. The cause and cost of her loss presaged the equally catastrophic loss of the R-101 in 1930, also due to structural failure. Note the gun turret atop the envelope