British Airship Bases of the Twentieth Century

Malcolm Fife

May 2017 · Fonthill Media

About this ebook

Numerous books have been written on airships, but few concentrate on their bases and infrastructure to support their operations. British Airship Bases of the Twentieth Century starts with documenting the primitive facilities from which the early machines flew in the years prior to the First World War. The outbreak of the First World War resulted in airships being adopted for military purposes and bases were established across Britain. Most of these were operated by the Royal Naval Air Service for the protection of shipping against U-boats.

In the 1920s, an attempt was made by the British Government to build airships for commercial transport. The locations where these giants of the sky were constructed are described as well as the proposed overseas passenger terminals. The latter part of this enthralling and detailed book chronicles the attempt to establish the airship as a means of transport to link together the far flung lands of the British Empire.

Reference is also made at attempts to revive the airship in the closing decade of the 20th century and the locations associated with them. 

Illustrations: 170 black and white photographs

About the author

Malcolm Fife is a professional photographer with a strong interest in history. His first published articles were illustrated features for the Scots Magazine. This was followed by his book The Nor Loch-Scotland's Lost Loch, a history of the body of water that once existed underneath Edinburgh Castle. After this, he wrote a number of publications on individual airfield histories followed by an account of Scottish aerodromes in the First World War. British Airship Bases of the Twentieth Century is Malcolm Fife's first book for Fonthill Media.