Roma (airship)

Roma was an Italian-built semi-rigid airship, designated by its designer as the Model T-34. Purchased by the United States from the Italian government in 1921, Roma was operated by the United States Army Air Service from November 1921 to February 21, 1922, when it crashed in Norfolk, Virginia, killing 34 people aboard, with 9 survivors. As a result of this accident, Roma was the last hydrogen inflated airship flown by the US military;  all subsequent airships were inflated with helium.

Design and development
The Roma was designed by Celestino Usuelli, the engineers Eugenio Prassone, Umberto Nobile and Colonel Gaetano Crocco. Designated and advertised as the Model T-34, it was the first project of the Stabilimento Costruzioni Aeronautiche ("Aeronautical Construction Factory"), for the partnership of Nobile, Usuelli, Croce and Giuseppe Valle. The T-34 was designed for trans-Atlantic crossings carrying up to 100 passengers, though initially fitted for 25. When constructed, Roma was the largest semi-rigid airship in the world. As a semi-rigid design it was built about a rigid keel - though the keel was partially articulated to allow some flexibility. The passenger spaces and control cabin were within the keel. The engines, 400 hp Ansaldo 4E-2940 V-12s, were mounted outside, angled such that the slipstreams would not interfere with each other.

Service
Roma made its first trial flight in September, 1920. The airship was purchased by the United States Army Air Service for $184,000 (equivalent to $ million in ). During the inspection and delivery ceremonies in March, 1921, the Italians took the new owners of the Roma on a 300 mi demonstration flight from Rome to Naples and back. Aboard the dirigible were the US Ambassador to Italy, his wife and several Army officers. The passengers were served lunch while flying over the island of Capri.

The Army originally planned to fly the Roma to the United States, but instead the airship was dismantled, packed in several crates and transported by ship, arriving in the US in August, 1921. When the Army unpacked the crates after their arrival at Langley Field, they found the airship's fabric outer cover had mildewed and weakened. After being reassembled with some difficulty by US Army Air Service crews at Langley, Roma flew in America for the first time on November 15, 1921, with minor problems. On a subsequent flight, a propeller disintegrated, ripped open the envelope and slashed a gas bag but the dirigible managed to return to Langley Field safely.

During a flight to Washington, D.C., on December 21, 1921, the Roma experienced several engine breakdowns due to the extremely cold weather. After the return flight to Langley was made on only four engines, the original Italian Ansaldo engines were replaced with six Liberty L-12's.

Crash
The Roma crashed in Norfolk, Virginia during a test flight on February 21, 1922. The airship left Langley Field around 2:00 PM with 45 people on board, most of whom were US Army airmen. There were also a few civilians, including mechanics and government observers. After lifting off, the pilot, Captain Dale Mabry, set a course along the shore of Chesapeake Bay that took it over Buckroe Beach, and Fort Monroe, before crossing Hampton Roads and passing over Willoughby Spit en-route to the Norfolk Navy Base. The crash of the Roma was caused by failure of the airship's box rudder system, which allowed it to maneuver over tight areas. Witnesses reported seeing the entire box rudder slip sideways, and the then-uncontrollable airship flew straight into the ground at the Army's Norfolk Quartermaster Depot (now the location of Norfolk International Terminals) from an altitude of 1000 feet. Just before the bow struck the ground, the Roma contacted high-voltage power lines and burst into flames. A total of 34 people were killed, 8 were injured, and 3 escaped unharmed. Among the dead was Captain Mabry. The crash of the Roma marked the greatest disaster in American aeronautics history up to that time.



Master Sergeant Harry A. Chapman earned the Cheney Award for his heroics during the crash. He was the first recipient of the award, which was presented by President Calvin Coolidge in 1928.

Although it was America's worst aviation disaster at the time, a century later the crash of the Roma has largely been forgotten, eclipsed by the Hindenburg disaster, which occurred 15 years later and  effectively ended the airship era. At Langley Air Force base, the spot where the massive hangar that housed the Roma once stood is now a parking lot; it is still known as the "LTA" ("lighter than air") area, and the base's Roma Road is named in memory of the ill-fated airship.