Do you ever look at New York City and think, “It could use something more?”
Yeah, me too. I couldn’t figure out what it was for the longest time. What could make the greatest city on earth even greater? Airships, airships could.
Imagine the prehistoric colossus balloons soaring along the skyline like majestic whales. Short-lived were those days, but not forgotten.
The “mooring mast” on top of the Empire State Building was supposed to be a docking port for airships. The image is straight out of a steampunk novel, and I am terribly disappointed that those plans never came to be. Occasionally, you can see the Shark Week Blimp fly over the city or the Goodyear Blimp at a game, but that’s only a taste of what could have been.
What Exactly is an Airship?
A little history about airships or dirigibles as their proper name dictates. Airships, zeppelins, and blimps are used interchangeably, but they aren’t all the same, but they are all dirigibles. It’s such a terrific word. It rolls off the tongue, and I didn’t know it existed until writing this article. Dirigible means “steerable.” They are lighter-than-air aircrafts that move by their own power. They were the first aircraft capable of controllable flight, not relying on the wind but on gas.
Dirigible technicalities for those interested: (those who aren’t should skip the next paragraph. There isn’t a quiz). There are several different types of airships. The categories are rigid, semi-rigid, and non-rigid. Non-rigid airships are often called blimps and use internal pressure to keep their shape. Semi-rigid airships use pressure and have a supporting structure. Rigid airships have an exterior frame to hold their shape.
Count Zeppelin flew and manufactured rigid airships. Although most people call airships Zeppelins, only those manufactured by the company are technically Zeppelins.
Everyone Loved Airships
The 1920s were all about airship travel and the German Zeppelins were extremely popular. In 1928 thousands of people flocked to Lakehurst, New Jersey, to watch the Graf Zeppelin’s land after a transatlantic trip. Round trip tickets for that journey cost around $3,000, which is about $40,000 in today’s money. Imagine spending that much money to fly over the Atlantic Ocean in a balloon! But people did. It was a lucrative and sexy business, and, New York City wanted to participate.
During the original construction, the Empire State Building’s roof was flat. In 1929, Alfred E. Smith, the leader of the investors responsible for the erection of the building, announced they were going to extend the building’s height by 200 feet. This construction would make the tower slightly taller than its rival, the Chrysler Building. This new mast would also serve as a mooring station for dirigibles and Zeppelins. Exhausted travelers could exit the airship via a gangplank and be whisked away down an elevator to all Manhattan had to offer.
It’s a hilarious plan, and even at the time. The New York Times dismissed it as impossible. Landing an airship required dozens of ground crew and perfect weather.
In 1930 the International News Photos distributed a photo of an airship docked on the mast. However, it wasn’t true. The photo was manipulated, an early form of photoshop. It wasn’t until 1931 that a privately owned airship docked on the mast. It was only there for mere minutes in 40 mph wind before it had to leave. This event caused a standstill traffic for 30 minutes. There were a few other attempts, but ultimately after scraping the plans, airship docking became a thing of fantasy.
It’s hard to know if Smith was serious about this plan or if it was all a publicity stunt for his tower that has since become an urban legend. Even today, people debate if there ever was an intention or just a way to mask his genuine desire to keep the Empire State building the tallest.
Even at the time, it was highly criticized. The commander of the Graf Zeppelin, Dr. Hugo Eckener, had a few things to say. He commented that a ship trying to land over the irregular city buildings would be in constant danger of crashing, even on a calm day. After docking, passengers would then have to cross a small free-moving gangplank a thousand feet in the air. No thanks.
And then they were no more
The glory of airships came crashing down, quite literally, when the Hindenburg melted in a ball of fire on May 6th, 1937, in Lakehurst, New Jersey. No one expected it as the airship had made over 30 successful transatlantic trips.
You can watch the harrowing event here.
Few people know that the Hindenburg had traveled over Manhattan only a few hours before its destruction. The ship could have easily exploded over the city, resulting in an enormous tragedy.
Public interest and travel on airships rapidly decreased after this. People decided that it was too dangerous, and eventually, airplanes took over as the primary choice of air travel.
And so, the age of airship travel came to an end, but the mooring mast remains on the Empire State Building. So, when you are next in Manhattan, take a moment to look up and imagine a future imagined by the past that never came to be. Revel in the joy that New York is the city of dreams. And even if they don’t come true in one way, they pave the way for an even better one.
Works Cited:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wimlrgwhgg
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/294832
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/air-space-magazine/docking-on-the-empire-state-building-12525534/
https://www.onverticality.com/blog/empire-state-mooring-mast
https://untappedcities.com/2013/05/28/daily-what-empire-state-building-zeppelin-docking-station/
https://www.boweryboyshistory.com/2008/06/dinosaurs-of-new-york-skyline.html
www.nytimes.com/2010/09/26/realestate/26scapes.html
Once again a wonderfully written article bringing history to life.