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#1084

K-class blimp

first flew 1938· patrol airship

🎖️ military 2× piston retired
10 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
  1. 1. K class blimp: USN· Public domain
  2. 2. NTS - Plumbob - Stokes test with Goodyear ZSG-3 blimp: USDOE· Public domain
  3. 3. A U.S. Navy K-class blimp flies low over a naval air station, circa in 1943-1944 (80-G-K-13733): Wikimedia Commons· Public domain
  4. 4. A U.S. Navy K-class blimp is towed toward a hangar, circa in 1944 (80-G-K-13315): Wikimedia Commons· Public domain
  5. 5. A U.S. Navy K-class blimp on anti-submarine patrol circa 1943-1944 (80-G-K-13741): Wikimedia Commons· Public domain
  6. 6. Blimp lands on USS Mindoro (CVE-120) c1950: U.S. Navy· Public domain
  7. 7. Blimp on deck of USS FD Roosevelt (CVA-42) in 1953: USN· Public domain
  8. 8. Goodyear blimp consruction: Goodyear Company· Public domain
  9. 9. Goodyear blimp construction 3: Goodyear Company· Public domain
  10. 10. K Class blimp Ford Motor ad 1946: Wide World Photos· Public domain
Read about it on Wikipedia ↗
K-class blimp, photo 1 of 10
1/10 USN· Public domain

what is it?

The K-class blimp was a class of blimps (non-rigid airship) built by the Goodyear Aircraft Company of Akron, Ohio, for the United States Navy. These blimps were powered by two Pratt & Whitney Wasp nine-cylinder radial air-cooled engines, each mounted on twin-strut outriggers, one per side of the control car that hung under the envelope. Before and during World War II, 134 K-class blimps were built and configured for patrol and anti-submarine warfare operations, and were extensively used in the Navy’s anti-submarine efforts in the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean areas.

base stats

  • speed 125 km/htop speed
  • range 3,537 kmwithout refuelling
  • built 134made in total

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

fun facts

  • First flew 88 years ago, in 1938.
  • Range of 3,537 km: 20× Amsterdam to Brussels.

piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.

spec sheet

first flight
1938-12-06
retired
1959
status
retired
number built
134
role
patrol airship
makers
Goodyear Aerospace
engines
2× Pratt & Whitney R-1340-AN-2 radials / Pratt & Whitney R-1340-AN2
crew
9
length
76.7 m
top speed
125 km/h
cruise speed
93 km/h
range
3,537 km

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.

Sources: Wikidata Q564098, Wikipedia: K-class blimp (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.

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