Identifier: airshipspastpres00hild (find matches)
Title: Airships past and present, together with chapters on the use of balloons in connection with meteorology, photography and the carrier pigeon
Year: 1908 (1900s)
Authors: Hildebrandt, A. (Alfred), b. 1870 Story, W. H. tr
Subjects: Aeronautics
Publisher: New York, D. Van Nostrand company
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: The Library of Congress

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great assistance amongst theice-fields of the Antarctic Ocean. When Marconi developed his system of wireless telegraphyorders were received that it was to be tested by the Balloon Corps, soas to find whether it was likely to be suitable for military purposes.This added a new field to their activities, demanding much study,and a great deal of experimental work. Captain von Sigsfeld wasthe moving spirit in the matter, and thanks to his efforts, a systemwas developed which, since his untimely death, has been extendedthroughout the army. Lately this work has been removed fromthe balloon section, and has more fitly taken its place in the Tele-graph Department. But, for the purposes of the war in South-West Africa, a division was sent out that was wholly recruitedfrom the balloon section, and succeeded in giving useful help. England. Experiments with captive balloons were made in England in1862. A military school for ballooning was started at Chatham ORGANISATION OF MILITARY BALLOONING. 163
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in 1879 under Captain Templer, and in the following year the24th company of the Royal Engineers was instructed in the M 2 164 AIBSHIPS PAST AND PKESENT. necessary field-work. Manoeuvres took place at Aldershot everyyear, in which the ballooning section played their part; and afactory with a school for ballooning was consequently erectedthere. It has been already mentioned that the English were thefirst to introduce the use of hydrogen, compressed in steelcylinders, which has greatly simplified work on the field of battle.Military balloons, as used in England, have very light and air-tight envelopes. They are made out of goldbeaters skins, andtheir size ranges from 7,000 to 10,000 cubic feet. These sizesare much smaller than those in use in other countries, but the ! *MJ: ■ ^ 1 j^j^j _ Fig. 100.—A collection of exploded gas cylinders. cost of making them is very great. The gas is mostly preparedby the electrolytic decomposition of water, and is stored in steelcylinders, 8 ft. long

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