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USS Macon (ZRS-5)
Encyclopedia
USS Macon (ZRS-5) was a rigid airship
built and operated by the United States Navy
for scouting
. She served as a "flying aircraft carrier"
, launching Curtiss F9C Sparrowhawk biplane fighter
s. In service for less than two years, in 1935 Macon was damaged in a storm and lost off California's
Big Sur coast
, though most of her crew were saved. The wreckage is listed as USS Macon Airship Remains on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
.
Less than 20 ft (6.1 m) shorter than Hindenburg
, she and her sister
——were among the largest flying objects in the world in terms of length and volume. Although the hydrogen-filled Hindenburg was longer, the two sisters still hold the world record for helium
-filled airships.
in Springfield Township, Ohio
by the Goodyear-Zeppelin Corporation
. Because this was by far the biggest airship ever to be built in America, a team of experienced German airship engineers—led by Chief Designer Karl Arnstein
—instructed and supported design and construction of both U.S. Navy
airships Akron and Macon.
The airship was named after the city of Macon, Georgia
, which was the largest city in the Congressional district of Representative Carl Vinson
, the then chairman of the House of Representative's Committee on Naval Affairs.
Macon was christened
on March 11, 1933 by Jeanette Whitton Moffett, wife of Rear Admiral
William A. Moffett
, Chief of the U.S. Navy's Bureau of Aeronautics
. The airship first flew one month later, shortly after the tragic loss of her sister ship Akron. Macon was commissioned
on June 23, 1933 with Commander
Alger H. Dresel in command.
Macon had a structured duralumin
um hull with three interior keel
s. The airship was kept aloft by 12 helium
-filled gas cells made from gelatin
-latex
fabric
. Inside the hull, the ship had eight German
-made Maybach
, 12-cylinder
, 560 hp gasoline-powered engines
that drove outside propeller
s. The propellers could be rotated down or backwards, providing an early form of thrust vectoring
, to control the ship during take-off and landing
s. Designed to carry five F9C Sparrowhawk biplane
s, Macon received her first aircraft on board July 6, 1933 during trial flights out of Lakehurst, New Jersey
. The planes were stored in bays inside the hull and were launched and retrieved using a trapeze
.
Departing the East Coast on October 12, Macons homefield became Naval Air Station
(NAS) Sunnyvale (now Moffett Federal Airfield
) in Santa Clara County
, California
. Macon had a far more productive career than her sister ship, Akron. Macons commanders developed the doctrine and techniques of using her aircraft to do scouting while the airship remained out of sight of the opposing forces in exercises. Macon participated in several fleet exercises, though the men who framed and conducted the exercises lacked an understanding of the airship's capabilities and weaknesses. It became standard practice to remove Sparrowhawk's landing gear aboard the airship and replace it with a fuel tank, giving the aircraft 30% more range.
Later in 1934, Lieutenant Commander
Herbert Wiley surprised President Franklin D. Roosevelt
—and the Navy—when Macon searched for—and located—the heavy cruiser
, which was then carrying the President back from a trip to Hawaii. Newspapers were dropped to the President on the ship, and the following communications were sent back to the airship: "from Houston: 1519 The President compliments you and your planes on your fine performance and excellent navigation 1210 and 1519 Well Done and thank you for the papers the President 1245."
The commander of the Fleet—Admiral Joseph M. Reeves
—was upset about the matter; however, Commander of the Bureau of Aviation—Admiral Ernest J. King—was not. Wiley—one of only three survivors of Akrons crash—was soon promoted to Commander
, and in time became a Rear Admiral
.
. As the ship's pressure height—the height at which the gas cells would start to leak and eventually rupture due to pressure difference—was less than 3000 ft (914.4 m), a large amount of helium was vented to reach this altitude without rupturing the gas cells. To compensate for the loss of lift, 9000 lb (4,082.3 kg) of ballast and 7000 lb (3,175.1 kg) of fuel had to be dumped. Macon was being flown 15000 lb (6,803.9 kg) "heavy" and was operating at full power not only in order to have sufficient dynamic lift, but to have enough control to fly in the severe turbulence through a mountain pass near Van Horn, Texas
. Following a severe drop, a diagonal girder in ring 17.5, which supported the forward fin attachment points, failed. Rapid damage control by Chief Boatswain's Mate Robert Davis repaired the girders before further failures could occur. Macon completed the journey safely but the buckled ring and all four tailfins were deemed in need of strengthening. The appropriate girders adjacent to the horizontal and lower fins were repaired, but the repair to the girders on either side of the top fin were delayed until the next scheduled overhaul when the adjacent gas cells could be deflated.
. During the storm, she was caught in a wind shear which caused structural failure
of the unstrengthened ring (17.5) to which the upper tailfin was attached. The fin failed to the side and was carried away. Pieces of structure punctured the rear gas cells and caused gas leakage. Acting rapidly and on fragmentary information an immediate and massive discharge of ballast was ordered. Control was lost and, tail heavy and with engines running full speed ahead, Macon rose past the pressure height and kept going until enough helium was vented to cancel the lift. It took her 20 minutes to descend from 4850 ft (1,478.3 m) and, settling gently into the sea, Macon sank off Monterey Bay
. Only two crewmembers died from her complement of 76, thanks to the warm conditions and the introduction of life jackets and inflatable rafts after the Akron tragedy. The two that perished did so needlessly: Radioman 1st Class Ernest Edwin Dailey jumped ship after she had lost most of her altitude but was still high above the ocean surface; Mess Attendant 1st Class Florentino Edquiba drowned while swimming back into the wreckage to try to retrieve personal belongings. An officer was rescued when Commander Wiley swam to his aid, an action for which he was later decorated.
The cause of the loss was operator error following the structural failure and loss of the fin. Had the ship not been driven over pressure height (where the cells were expanded fully and lifting gas released) Macon could have made it back to Moffett Field. Four Sparrowhawks carried aboard were lost with the airship.
Macon, having completed 50 flights from her commissioning date, was stricken from the Navy list on February 26, 1935. Subsequent airships for Navy use were of a nonrigid design.
The Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute
(MBARI) succeeded in locating and surveying the debris field of Macon in February 1991, and was able to recover artifacts from her. The exploration included sonar, video, and still camera data, as well as some artifact recovery.
In May 2005, MBARI returned to the site as part of a year-long research project to identify archeological resources in the bay. Side-scan sonar was used to survey the site.
s and involving researchers from MBARI and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, took place in September 2006. Video clips of the expedition were made available to the public through the OceansLive Web Portal, a service of NOAA.
The 2006 expedition was a success, and revealed a number of new surprises and changes since the last visit, ~15 years ago. High-definition video and more than 10,000 new images were captured, which will be assembled into a photomosaic of the wreck.
on January 29, 2010. The wreck site remains secret, and is within a marine sanctuary, the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary
, and is not accessible to divers due to depth (1500 ft (457.2 m)). It is also a U.S. Navy gravesite.
According to the U.S. National Park Service:
The site was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
on January 29, 2010. The listing was announced as the featured listing in the National Park Service
's weekly list of February 12, 2010.
Airship
An airship or dirigible is a type of aerostat or "lighter-than-air aircraft" that can be steered and propelled through the air using rudders and propellers or other thrust mechanisms...
built and operated by the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
for scouting
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
. She served as a "flying aircraft carrier"
Airborne aircraft carrier
Airborne aircraft carriers are aircraft which can launch other aircraft. These typically are large aircraft that launch fighter-interceptor planes.-Dirigible aircraft carriers:...
, launching Curtiss F9C Sparrowhawk biplane fighter
Fighter aircraft
A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed primarily to attack ground targets...
s. In service for less than two years, in 1935 Macon was damaged in a storm and lost off California's
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
Big Sur coast
Big Sur
Big Sur is a sparsely populated region of the Central Coast of California where the Santa Lucia Mountains rise abruptly from the Pacific Ocean. The name "Big Sur" is derived from the original Spanish-language "el sur grande", meaning "the big south", or from "el país grande del sur", "the big...
, though most of her crew were saved. The wreckage is listed as USS Macon Airship Remains on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
Less than 20 ft (6.1 m) shorter than Hindenburg
LZ 129 Hindenburg
LZ 129 Hindenburg was a large German commercial passenger-carrying rigid airship, the lead ship of the Hindenburg class, the longest class of flying machine and the largest airship by envelope volume...
, she and her sister
Sister ship
A sister ship is a ship of the same class as, or of virtually identical design to, another ship. Such vessels share a near-identical hull and superstructure layout, similar displacement, and roughly comparable features and equipment...
——were among the largest flying objects in the world in terms of length and volume. Although the hydrogen-filled Hindenburg was longer, the two sisters still hold the world record for helium
Helium
Helium is the chemical element with atomic number 2 and an atomic weight of 4.002602, which is represented by the symbol He. It is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, inert, monatomic gas that heads the noble gas group in the periodic table...
-filled airships.
Construction and commissioning
USS Macon was built at the Goodyear AirdockGoodyear Airdock
The Goodyear Airdock is an airship storage and construction hangar in Akron, Ohio.-History:Built and previously owned by the Goodyear-Zeppelin Corporation, later Goodyear Aerospace, it was constructed from April 20, 1929 to November 25, 1929, at a cost of $2.2 million...
in Springfield Township, Ohio
Springfield Township, Summit County, Ohio
Springfield Township is one of the nine townships of Summit County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 15,168 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the southeastern part of the county, it borders the following townships and cities:...
by the Goodyear-Zeppelin Corporation
Goodyear Aerospace
Goodyear Aerospace Corporation was the aerospace and defense subsidiary of Goodyear.-Early Years:The company began as Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.’s Aeronautics Department and renamed in 1917 as the Goodyear Zeppelin Corporation set up to construct dirigibles for the US military...
. Because this was by far the biggest airship ever to be built in America, a team of experienced German airship engineers—led by Chief Designer Karl Arnstein
Karl Arnstein
Karl Arnstein was one of the most important 20th century airship engineers and designers in Germany and the United States of America. He was born in Prague, Bohemia to Jewish parents. He developed stress analysis methods that have been incorporated into airships and airplane materials...
—instructed and supported design and construction of both U.S. Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
airships Akron and Macon.
The airship was named after the city of Macon, Georgia
Macon, Georgia
Macon is a city located in central Georgia, US. Founded at the fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is part of the Macon metropolitan area, and the county seat of Bibb County. A small portion of the city extends into Jones County. Macon is the biggest city in central Georgia...
, which was the largest city in the Congressional district of Representative Carl Vinson
Carl Vinson
Carl Vinson was a United States Representative from Georgia. He was a Democrat and the first person to serve for more than 50 years in the United States House of Representatives...
, the then chairman of the House of Representative's Committee on Naval Affairs.
Macon was christened
Ship naming and launching
The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...
on March 11, 1933 by Jeanette Whitton Moffett, wife of Rear Admiral
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
William A. Moffett
William A. Moffett
William Adger Moffett was an American admiral notable as the architect of naval aviation in the United States Navy.-Biography:...
, Chief of the U.S. Navy's Bureau of Aeronautics
Bureau of Aeronautics
The Bureau of Aeronautics was the U.S. Navy's material-support organization for Naval Aviation from 1921 to 1959. The bureau had "cognizance" for the design, procurement, and support of Naval aircraft and related systems...
. The airship first flew one month later, shortly after the tragic loss of her sister ship Akron. Macon was commissioned
Ship commissioning
Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...
on June 23, 1933 with Commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
Alger H. Dresel in command.
Macon had a structured duralumin
Duralumin
Duralumin is the trade name of one of the earliest types of age-hardenable aluminium alloys. The main alloying constituents are copper, manganese, and magnesium. A commonly used modern equivalent of this alloy type is AA2024, which contains 4.4% copper, 1.5% magnesium, 0.6% manganese and 93.5%...
um hull with three interior keel
Keel
In boats and ships, keel can refer to either of two parts: a structural element, or a hydrodynamic element. These parts overlap. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in construction of a ship, in British and American shipbuilding traditions the construction is dated from this event...
s. The airship was kept aloft by 12 helium
Helium
Helium is the chemical element with atomic number 2 and an atomic weight of 4.002602, which is represented by the symbol He. It is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, inert, monatomic gas that heads the noble gas group in the periodic table...
-filled gas cells made from gelatin
Gelatin
Gelatin is a translucent, colorless, brittle , flavorless solid substance, derived from the collagen inside animals' skin and bones. It is commonly used as a gelling agent in food, pharmaceuticals, photography, and cosmetic manufacturing. Substances containing gelatin or functioning in a similar...
-latex
Latex
Latex is the stable dispersion of polymer microparticles in an aqueous medium. Latexes may be natural or synthetic.Latex as found in nature is a milky fluid found in 10% of all flowering plants . It is a complex emulsion consisting of proteins, alkaloids, starches, sugars, oils, tannins, resins,...
fabric
Fabric
A fabric is a textile material, short for "textile fabric".Fabric may also refer to:*Fabric , the spatial and geometric configuration of elements within a rock*Fabric , a nightclub in London, England...
. Inside the hull, the ship had eight German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
-made Maybach
Maybach
Maybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
, 12-cylinder
Cylinder (engine)
A cylinder is the central working part of a reciprocating engine or pump, the space in which a piston travels. Multiple cylinders are commonly arranged side by side in a bank, or engine block, which is typically cast from aluminum or cast iron before receiving precision machine work...
, 560 hp gasoline-powered engines
Petrol engine
A petrol engine is an internal combustion engine with spark-ignition, designed to run on petrol and similar volatile fuels....
that drove outside propeller
Propeller
A propeller is a type of fan that transmits power by converting rotational motion into thrust. A pressure difference is produced between the forward and rear surfaces of the airfoil-shaped blade, and a fluid is accelerated behind the blade. Propeller dynamics can be modeled by both Bernoulli's...
s. The propellers could be rotated down or backwards, providing an early form of thrust vectoring
Thrust vectoring
Thrust vectoring, also thrust vector control or TVC, is the ability of an aircraft, rocket or other vehicle to manipulate the direction of the thrust from its engine or motor in order to control the attitude or angular velocity of the vehicle....
, to control the ship during take-off and landing
Landing
thumb|A [[Mute Swan]] alighting. Note the ruffled feathers on top of the wings indicate that the swan is flying at the [[Stall |stall]]ing speed...
s. Designed to carry five F9C Sparrowhawk biplane
Biplane
A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two superimposed main wings. The Wright brothers' Wright Flyer used a biplane design, as did most aircraft in the early years of aviation. While a biplane wing structure has a structural advantage, it produces more drag than a similar monoplane wing...
s, Macon received her first aircraft on board July 6, 1933 during trial flights out of Lakehurst, New Jersey
Lakehurst, New Jersey
Lakehurst is a Borough in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the borough population was 2,654.Lakehurst was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 7, 1921, from portions of Manchester Township, based on the results of a...
. The planes were stored in bays inside the hull and were launched and retrieved using a trapeze
Trapeze
A trapeze is a short horizontal bar hung by ropes or metal straps from a support. It is an aerial apparatus commonly found in circus performances...
.
Early service history
Naval Air Station
A Naval Air Station is a military airbase, and consists of a permanent land-based operations locations for the military aviation division of the relevant branch of their Navy...
(NAS) Sunnyvale (now Moffett Federal Airfield
Moffett Federal Airfield
Moffett Federal Airfield , also known as Moffett Field, is a joint civil-military airport located between northern Mountain View and northern Sunnyvale, California, USA. The airport is near the south end of San Francisco Bay, northwest of San Jose. Formerly a United States Navy facility, the former...
) in Santa Clara County
Santa Clara County, California
Santa Clara County is a county located at the southern end of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 it had a population of 1,781,642. The county seat is San Jose. The highly urbanized Santa Clara Valley within Santa Clara County is also known as Silicon Valley...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. Macon had a far more productive career than her sister ship, Akron. Macons commanders developed the doctrine and techniques of using her aircraft to do scouting while the airship remained out of sight of the opposing forces in exercises. Macon participated in several fleet exercises, though the men who framed and conducted the exercises lacked an understanding of the airship's capabilities and weaknesses. It became standard practice to remove Sparrowhawk's landing gear aboard the airship and replace it with a fuel tank, giving the aircraft 30% more range.
Later in 1934, Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant Commander is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander...
Herbert Wiley surprised President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
—and the Navy—when Macon searched for—and located—the heavy cruiser
Heavy cruiser
The heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser, a naval warship designed for long range, high speed and an armament of naval guns roughly 203mm calibre . The heavy cruiser can be seen as a lineage of ship design from 1915 until 1945, although the term 'heavy cruiser' only came into formal use in 1930...
, which was then carrying the President back from a trip to Hawaii. Newspapers were dropped to the President on the ship, and the following communications were sent back to the airship: "from Houston: 1519 The President compliments you and your planes on your fine performance and excellent navigation 1210 and 1519 Well Done and thank you for the papers the President 1245."
The commander of the Fleet—Admiral Joseph M. Reeves
Joseph M. Reeves
Joseph Mason "Bull" Reeves was an admiral in the United States Navy, who was an early and important supporter of U.S. Naval Aviation...
—was upset about the matter; however, Commander of the Bureau of Aviation—Admiral Ernest J. King—was not. Wiley—one of only three survivors of Akrons crash—was soon promoted to Commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
, and in time became a Rear Admiral
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
.
Leading up to the crash
During a crossing of the continent, Macon was forced to fly up to 6000 ft (1,828.8 m) to clear mountains in ArizonaArizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
. As the ship's pressure height—the height at which the gas cells would start to leak and eventually rupture due to pressure difference—was less than 3000 ft (914.4 m), a large amount of helium was vented to reach this altitude without rupturing the gas cells. To compensate for the loss of lift, 9000 lb (4,082.3 kg) of ballast and 7000 lb (3,175.1 kg) of fuel had to be dumped. Macon was being flown 15000 lb (6,803.9 kg) "heavy" and was operating at full power not only in order to have sufficient dynamic lift, but to have enough control to fly in the severe turbulence through a mountain pass near Van Horn, Texas
Van Horn, Texas
Van Horn is a town in and the county seat of Culberson County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,435 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Van Horn is located at ....
. Following a severe drop, a diagonal girder in ring 17.5, which supported the forward fin attachment points, failed. Rapid damage control by Chief Boatswain's Mate Robert Davis repaired the girders before further failures could occur. Macon completed the journey safely but the buckled ring and all four tailfins were deemed in need of strengthening. The appropriate girders adjacent to the horizontal and lower fins were repaired, but the repair to the girders on either side of the top fin were delayed until the next scheduled overhaul when the adjacent gas cells could be deflated.
Disaster
On February 12, 1935, the repair process was still incomplete when, returning to Sunnyvale from fleet maneuvers, Macon ran into a storm off Point Sur, CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. During the storm, she was caught in a wind shear which caused structural failure
Structural failure
Structural failure refers to loss of the load-carrying capacity of a component or member within a structure or of the structure itself. Structural failure is initiated when the material is stressed to its strength limit, thus causing fracture or excessive deformations...
of the unstrengthened ring (17.5) to which the upper tailfin was attached. The fin failed to the side and was carried away. Pieces of structure punctured the rear gas cells and caused gas leakage. Acting rapidly and on fragmentary information an immediate and massive discharge of ballast was ordered. Control was lost and, tail heavy and with engines running full speed ahead, Macon rose past the pressure height and kept going until enough helium was vented to cancel the lift. It took her 20 minutes to descend from 4850 ft (1,478.3 m) and, settling gently into the sea, Macon sank off Monterey Bay
Monterey Bay
Monterey Bay is a bay of the Pacific Ocean, along the central coast of California. The bay is south of San Francisco and San Jose, between the cities of Santa Cruz and Monterey....
. Only two crewmembers died from her complement of 76, thanks to the warm conditions and the introduction of life jackets and inflatable rafts after the Akron tragedy. The two that perished did so needlessly: Radioman 1st Class Ernest Edwin Dailey jumped ship after she had lost most of her altitude but was still high above the ocean surface; Mess Attendant 1st Class Florentino Edquiba drowned while swimming back into the wreckage to try to retrieve personal belongings. An officer was rescued when Commander Wiley swam to his aid, an action for which he was later decorated.
The cause of the loss was operator error following the structural failure and loss of the fin. Had the ship not been driven over pressure height (where the cells were expanded fully and lifting gas released) Macon could have made it back to Moffett Field. Four Sparrowhawks carried aboard were lost with the airship.
Macon, having completed 50 flights from her commissioning date, was stricken from the Navy list on February 26, 1935. Subsequent airships for Navy use were of a nonrigid design.
Wreck site exploration
Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute
The Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute is a not-for-profit oceanographic research center in Moss Landing, California affiliated with the Monterey Bay Aquarium. It was founded in 1987 by David Packard of Hewlett-Packard fame...
(MBARI) succeeded in locating and surveying the debris field of Macon in February 1991, and was able to recover artifacts from her. The exploration included sonar, video, and still camera data, as well as some artifact recovery.
In May 2005, MBARI returned to the site as part of a year-long research project to identify archeological resources in the bay. Side-scan sonar was used to survey the site.
2006 expedition
A more complete return, including exploration with remotely operated vehicleRemotely operated vehicle
A remotely operated vehicle is a tethered underwater vehicle. They are common in deepwater industries such as offshore hydrocarbon extraction. An ROV may sometimes be called a remotely operated underwater vehicle to distinguish it from remote control vehicles operating on land or in the air. ROVs...
s and involving researchers from MBARI and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, took place in September 2006. Video clips of the expedition were made available to the public through the OceansLive Web Portal, a service of NOAA.
The 2006 expedition was a success, and revealed a number of new surprises and changes since the last visit, ~15 years ago. High-definition video and more than 10,000 new images were captured, which will be assembled into a photomosaic of the wreck.
Protection
The wreckage of Macon was listed in the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on January 29, 2010. The wreck site remains secret, and is within a marine sanctuary, the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary
Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary
The Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary is a US Federally protected marine area offshore of California's central coast around Monterey Bay....
, and is not accessible to divers due to depth (1500 ft (457.2 m)). It is also a U.S. Navy gravesite.
According to the U.S. National Park Service:
When the USS Macon was christened on March 11, 1933, she was the most sophisticated of the Navy’s lighter-than-air (LTA) fleet. The Macon exhibited the highest expression of naval LTA technology during her short career. At 785 feet in length, the airship’s size captured American fascination during flyovers of U.S. communities as chronicled in numerous advertisements, articles, and newsreels. The dramatic loss of the Macon and her sister ship, the , within two years of each other contributed to the cancellation of the Navy’s rigid airship program. The archeological remains of the USS Macon lie off California’s Big Sur coast in NOAA’s Monterey Bay National Marine SanctuaryMonterey Bay National Marine SanctuaryThe Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary is a US Federally protected marine area offshore of California's central coast around Monterey Bay....
. The site also contains the remains of four of the airship’s squadron of small Curtiss F9C SparrowhawkF9C Sparrowhawk|-See also:-External links:...
scout aircraft which the Macon carried in an internal hangar bay.
The site was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on January 29, 2010. The listing was announced as the featured listing in the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
's weekly list of February 12, 2010.
See also
- List of airships of the United States Navy, Macons sister ship.
- Curtiss F9C Sparrowhawk, Macons intended parasitic fighter
- List of airship accidents
- KQED has put together a video with info about USS Macon, historical and wreck-site footage, as well as info about the new zeppelin that is flying over the San Francisco Bay Area.
- Moffett Field Museum near San Jose, CA has an exhibit dedicated to the USS Macon.
- In January 2011, National Geographic Channel premiered the documentary "Flying Aircraft Carrier", which chronicles the history and loss of USS Macon.Flying Aircraft Carrier
External links
- Airships.net: U.S.S. Akron and Macon
- A 1964 KPIX-TV documentary about the U.S.S. Macon
- U.S. Naval Historical Center pages on ZRS-5
- Lucidcafe.com has a good page with some additional photos of the ship and crew called USS Macon: The US Navy's last dirigible
- Casualties: US Navy and Marine Corps Personnel Killed and Injured in Selected Accidents and Other Incidents Not Directly the Result of Enemy Action
- Uncovering the USS Macon: The Underwater Airship" Der Spiegel