The TC-3 and the TC-7 were the two United States Army Air Corps non-rigid blimps used for parasite fighter trials conducted in 1923–24. A single Sperry Messenger biplane was equipped with a skyhook to engage the temporary trapeze mounted to the control carriage of the blimp itself. The first successful docking was achieved on December 15, 1924. Despite the completely successful results of the program, the Army chose not to develop the concept further. It was the Navy which began the better-known project in 1925 using rigid airships, the USS Los Angeles (ZR-3), the USS Macon (ZRS-5) and the USS Akron (ZRS-4).
Scott Field in St. Clair County, Illinois, had a US Army Lighter-than-Air Base fromn 1921–1937 for training, including J-class blimps. In 1937, the Army Air Corps ended its airship program and transferred all its LTA material to the Navy, only two blimps were used by the Navy: TC-13 and TC-14.
See also
References
- "Verville-Sperry M-1 Messenger | National Air and Space Museum". airandspace.si.edu. Archived from the original on 2014-05-23.
- "The West Point Of The Air"" Popular Mechanics, June 1930, TC class pages 941, 943 (bottom), 944
- "Wild Night In The T-C-10", September 1931, Popular Mechanics article/photos on the TC-10, of the same class as the TC-3
- "TC-13 Airship, Scott Field, 1920's". www.scott.af.mil.
- "17 September 1935 – The Maiden Flight of the Final and Most Modern Army Airship was Conduc". Scott Air Force Base. September 17, 2018.
External links
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