Our Aircraft’s History

Loral GZ-22 “Spirit of Akron” (C/S N4A; S/N 4120) ~ Originally built for the purpose of demonstrating the modern military capability of airships to the US Navy, this only version of the GZ-22 was originally designed by Goodyear but built by Loral after Goodyear withdrew from airship manufacturing. The GZ-22 had a steel framed and composite skinned gondola with a neoprene-impregnated polyester 2-ply envelope filled with helium. The GZ-22 Type Certificate was issued on 31 August 1989, designated the “Spirit of Akron”.  

She flew for Goodyear for just over 10 years during the 1990’s, always a staple to the Northeast Ohio skyline.

On the evening of October 28,1999, the Spirit of Akron crashed in Suffield Township, Ohio, when it suddenly entered an uncontrolled left turn and began descending. The pilot and technician on board received only minor injuries when the airship hit trees. The NTSB report identified improperly hardened metal splines on the control actuators had sheared, causing loss of control and identified the probable cause as being failure by the “flight control system manufacturer to meet design (hardness) specifications”.

Goodyear donated the gondola and many of the parts to MAPS Air Museum.  MAPS restoration crew went to work on the car. October 31, 2008, she was delivered to MAPS on a flat bed trailer. With the help of the movers, MAPS, and the airport it was unloaded and moved into the hangar where it sits now. 

Museum display note: the “Spirit of Akron” retains the colors and markings as it flew during the 1990’s.

Specifications/Performance

  • Crew: 1
  • Capacity: 10 passengers
  • Length: 205 ft 6 in 
  • Width: 47 ft 
  • Height: 60 ft 2 in 
  • Volume: 247,800 ft3 
  • Gross weight: 15,000 lb 
  • Engines: 2 × Allison 250-B17C turboprops, 420 hp each
  • Maximum speed: 65 mph 
  • Service ceiling: 10,000 ft

 

Designed to replace: Goodyear GZ-20A (blimp)

Replaced by: Zeppelin NT LZ N07-101 (semi-rigid airship)

 

BONUS ONLINE information on blimps/zeppelins below:

 
Article on how the name, Spirit of Akron, came to be.

Goodyear donated the control car and many of the parts to MAPS Air Museum.  Prior to coming to the museum, a MAPS restoration crew went to work on the car at the Wingfoot Lake Hangar. On October 31, 2008, the control car was delivered to MAPS on a flatbed trailer. The instrument panel did not have any instruments, though Goodyear gave us the instruments. They were soon placed in the panels and rewired. Power Supplies were added to power the instruments, radio, DVD player, LCD screen, audio amplifier, and lights. 

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Here is a synopsis of the varying sizes, types and specs of the Goodyear fleet over the last century.
 
Wiki information on Goodyear’s fleet, particularly the GZ versions, fleet accidents, Navy versions and how they name their airships.  Goodyear’s website on their fleet.
 
Confused on the difference of airships, dirigibles, zeppelins and blimps?  This link helps clarify the difference of these names.
 

Wingfoot Three flies over the Goodyear air hangar early Monday morning at Wingfoot Lake in Suffield Township on Monday, June 25, 2018. (Jeff Lange/Beacon Journal/Ohio.com correspondent)

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Blimps/Zeppelins have their own museum dedicated to lighter-than-air airships in downtown Akron:
526 S Main St # 406, Akron, OH 44311