Hangars near Bedford

[tmmorris]

What do they do in those enormous hangars NE of Bedford (it's a Danger Area, can't remember the number off-hand...)? Looks big enough for a spaceship...

Tim

[TheOddOne]

Well, they USED to build massive airships in them, before WWII. The R100 and R101, to be precise. One (the R101) was a government run complete disaster (literally, unfortunately) and the other (R100) private-enterprise version was a success. R100 flew both ways across the Atlantic but the R101 crashed in France on its maiden voyage.

Cheers,
TheOddOne

[treadigraph]

SE of Bedford is Cardington where the old airship hangars are. Certainly one is used these days by the Building Research Establishment - I know that fire research is done there and you may have seen safety films demonstrating things like fire flashover in a domestic environment, which my fire safety director told me were filmed at Cardington. Whether the other is used for similar purposes I dunno.

Cheers

Treadders

[chevvron]

The Cardington Airship SHEDs were used more recently for the Goodyear blimp, then the Skyship 500 and 600. Last I heard of the Skyships was when MOD(PE) bought one for use as a stable trials platform; it got punctured at Boscombe Down and as far as I know, was never repaired. The sheds were also used into the mid '90's for flying tethered barrage type balloons; they could go up to 10000ft! Think of it, 10000ft of 1/4 in diameter cable in the sky, not easy to see when you're flying!(but they did used to have small markers on it every 300ft)

[LowNSlow]

Years ago I remember reading about a chap who had a Tipsy nipper based there. He could do 2 or 3 touch and goes in the length of the shed!

Always a handy landmark when heading North from the Luton zone.

[Genghis the Engineer]

If you want to learn about what used to go on in there (and it is an absolutely fascinating story) go and read a book called "Slide Rule" by Nevil Shute.

Nevil Shute Norway is best known as a writer of fiction, but he was also an aircraft designer, and for many years No.2 to Barnes-Wallis. He ran much of the flight testing of the R100 airship. Slide Rule is his autobiography and a fascinating read.

G

[chevvron]

One of my colleagues told me many years ago that he did ATC Camp at Cardington, and they actually flew in Chipmunks from there.
My brother went there as part of his selection for Boy Entrant (Air Radar Mechanic); that must have been about '61.

[BossEyed]

One of my colleagues told me many years ago that he did ATC Camp at Cardington, and they actually flew in Chipmunks from there.


Blimey, they are big hangars then. :}

The Skyship at Boscombe was repaired, but the programme ended soon afterwards. I think that ZH762 is now stored at... Cardington.

[Genghis the Engineer]

Blimey, they are big hangars then. :}
The Skyship at Boscombe was repaired, but the programme ended soon afterwards. I think that ZH762 is now stored at... Cardington.
Worth taking a look at if you're ever passing, the sheer size of them from the ground in particular is absolutely staggering.

I may be wrong, but I believe that they're the largest freestanding buildings in Europe. I've also been told that they develope clouds internally and occasionally precipitation.

G

[chevvron]

Yes you're right there Genghis. I remember reading about a group who used to fly 'microfilm' model a/c in them (the ones weighing less than an ounce, so you need absolutely still air) and they bemoaned the fact they couldn't allow spectators in as the condensation from their breath would form clouds. Same thing happens in US Style superdomes, where they have to have de-humidifiers running every game.
Boss-eyed - I meant from the grass outside the sheds; used to be a large area to allow for the swing of the R100 size ships, but it may well be smaller now.

[BossEyed]

Boss-eyed - I meant from the grass outside the sheds.

Yeah, I know; I was just in one of those moods :cool: It's a long while since I've passed by, but they are indeed impressive. Never been inside, though.

I'd concur with Genghis' recommendation of "Slide Rule", too. Fascinating chap, N S Norway.

[Ripline]

Might have mentioned it before - at Cardington on 15the February 1997 we (British Balloon & Airship Club) went for, and obtained the World Record for the maximum number of simultaneously inflated hot air balloons within an enclosed structure. 84, actually!

It was :-

a) colourful and
b) highly irritating to our American cousins, who have the tallest single large enclosed building in the form of the Shuttle Assembly Building, but Cardington No.1 probably has a greater floor area. I think that the SAB does form clouds, don't think that No.1 is high enough, although it is said that the WWII Ark Royal would have fitted somewhat loosly into it!

My club runs an annual pilgrimage each Autumn and flies out from the front field.

Ripline

[BRL]

They are big. I go past them almost every day and they still look inpressive. One of my old trainees said she passed her motorbike instructor test there a couple of years ago and one of my old trainers, he has retired now, says he done national service there! Have heard stories from the locals up that way of ghosts in one of them too.

[treadigraph]

Was recently reading Anthony Smith's "The Dangerous Sort" about some of his gas ballooning exploits in the 1960s - on one flight from Norfolk, by some clever use of slightly varying winds at different altitudes and quite a lot of luck, he managed to land outside the sheds at Cardington.

An excellent read by the way, as is his "Throw Out Two Hands".

[Herge_uk]

They are indeed the old airship hangars, more recently there was a rumour about them being hired as part of an indoor set for the new Batman film.

["aux vaches"]

As one with frequent flyer miles in the cardington area i can report that they do on occasion winch their balloons into cloud - which gives you no chance of seeing any cable - all the more reason to seriously repect their danger area

usually you can see the winch on the ground when their balloons are up - but don,t bet on it


"aux vaches"

[Phil Space]

Number 2 hangar was actually re-located from Pulham Market in Norfolk. It was transported to Cardington in the 1920s to house the R100 - the first privately built airship, designed by Barnes Wallis, to accommodate up to 100 passengers in luxury.This was Pulham site,during construction of the sheds in 1915
http://www.aht.ndirect.co.uk/sheds/images/Pulham1.jpg
http://www.aht.ndirect.co.uk/airships/r36/images/R36lge.jpg
http://www.centennialofflight.gov/essay/Lighter_than_air/dirigibles/Lta9g11.jpg
http://www.aht.ndirect.co.uk/sheds/images/Pulhintr.jpg
Pulham was one of the UK's most important airship stations from 1917 until 1930. The R34 made the first transatlantic roundtrip flight in July 1919, flying from East Fortune, Scotland, to Newfoundland, Canada, back to Mineola, New York, and returning to Pulham. It flew about 7,000 miles in 183 hours and 15 minutes. On the 5th October, 1930, the R101 crashed at Beauvais in France and with it perished many of the men who had been so well-known at Pulham.
This disaster saw the abandonment of Britain's airship programme, so that the Pulham Market station fell into disuse.
See: http://www.gurney.co.uk/halliday/beckvale/psmair.htm
Cardington is certainly impressive from the air and the ground.
http://www.aht.ndirect.co.uk/sheds/images/Card.jpg

[LTNman]

I did a tour of one of the hangars around 12 years ago and am sure there was a British Airways Boeing 707 sitting in the corner which must have been transported in on the back of some lorries. Think the fire research department used it. Here is a photo of one of the hangars from the ground.
http://www.airliners.net/open.file/0855309/M/

[henry crun]

The first airship to fly in UK since the 1930's, Bournemouth, was constructed at Cardington and took to the air in the summer of 1951.

[boomerangben]

I don't what is more impressive, their size or the fact that one of them at least is nearly 100 years old.

[BossEyed]

...more recently there was a rumour about them being hired as part of an indoor set for the new Batman film.

You're not wrong, Henge. 'Batman Begins' filming info (http://www.theasc.com/magazine/june05/batman/page1.html)

http://www.theasc.com/magazine/june05/batman/images/image17.jpg

(Edited to add an image from the above link worth sharing here)

[BRL]

What a gem of a thread! I love stuff like this, brilliant.

Thanks to all posting here, these pictures are excellent. :)

[Ripline]

This extract from the bedfordshire.gov website:

1917: The Admiralty purchase land for an airship factory at Cardington. Number 1 shed built by A.J. Main and Co. of Glasgow in 1916-17. The first two airships built in this shed were the R31 and the R32. The shed was enlarged in 1926-27 by the Cleveland Bridge Company with the purpose of housing the R101.
1918: R31 airship built.
1919: Royal Airship Works founded. R32 airship built.
1926: Steel mooring tower for airships erected. It was 70ft in diameter and 202ft tall.
1927: Hangar No. 1 extended to house the R101.
1928: Number 2 shed built by the Cleveland Bridge Company to house the R100. The R100 arrived in December 1929 from Howden, Yorkshire, where it had been built, and in 1930 successfully flew the Atlantic both ways.
1930: R101 airship (http://www.galaxy.bedfordshire.gov.uk/webingres/bedfordshire/vlib/0.digitised_resources/cardington_digitisation_az_topics_r101.htm) crashes on her maiden voyage to India on October 4th.

Not sure quite what the Pulham Market link was. The structures are to the same design, judging from the external appearance. I hadn't realised the difference in ages between No.1 and No.2, but the earlier No.1 is in much worse condition that its companion. Hard hats mandatory for entering it as sometimes the steel cladding bolts fall from the roof (scary or what :eek: ).

Rumour has it that you could buy it for £1, but you'd have to maintain it!

The once steam-powered hanger doors run on railway tracks. Phil Space's excellent photo shows the support gantries - ALL of that mass moves with the doors!

It should be saved, but if the nation is prepared to let places like Bentley Priory go along with the Blackbuck Leader Vulcan rotting away at Scampton I for one am not very hopeful.

One good hurricane and the issue will settle itself :{

Ripline

[LTNman]

This is worth a look http://www.controltowers.co.uk/C/Cardington.htm

That Boeing 707 which was inside one of the hangars was wingless

[BillieBob]

OK, so it's not Cardington - but it could have been!
http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-2/1150911/IMG_0294.JPG
North American AT-6 Texan flies through the USN blimp hangar at Tillamook, Oregon