British Army Dirigible No 1, christened ''Nulli Secundus'' (Latin: "Second to none") was a semi-rigid airship. First flown on 10 September 1907, it was Britain's first powered military aircraft.

Design

Built at the Army's Balloon Factory at Farnborough, the early design work was carried out by Colonel James Templer, and it was completed by Colonel

John Capper Major-General Sir John Edward Capper (7 December 1861 − 24 May 1955) was a senior officer of the British Army during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century who served on the North-West Frontier of British India, in South Africa and ...

of the Royal Engineers and

Samuel Cody Samuel Franklin Cowdery (later known as Samuel Franklin Cody; 6 March 1867 – 7 August 1913, born Davenport, Iowa, USA)) was a Wild West showman and early pioneer of manned flight. He is most famous for his work on the large kites known ...

, who was mainly responsible for developing the steering gear and power installation. It had a cylindrical

envelope An envelope is a common packaging item, usually made of thin, flat material. It is designed to contain a flat object, such as a letter or card. Traditional envelopes are made from sheets of paper cut to one of three shapes: a rhombus, a sh ...

constructed from

goldbeater's skin Goldbeater's skin is the processed outer membrane of the intestine of an animal, typically cattle, which is valued for its strength against tearing. The term derives from its traditional use as durable layers interleaved between sheets of gold st ...

without internal ballonets,Higham, Robin (1961) ''The British Rigid Airship, 1908-1931'' Henley-on-Thames: Foulis. p. 13. from which a long triangular-section framework of steel tubing was suspended by four silk bands. The control surfaces, consisting of a rudder and

elevator An elevator or lift is a cable-assisted, hydraulic cylinder-assisted, or roller-track assisted machine that vertically transports people or freight between floors, levels, or decks of a building, vessel, or other structure. They a ...

s at the rear, a pair of large elevators amidships and a further pair at the front, were attached to this framework, and a small

gondola The gondola (, ; vec, góndoła ) is a traditional, flat-bottomed Venetian rowing boat, well suited to the conditions of the Venetian lagoon. It is typically propelled by a gondolier, who uses a rowing oar, which is not fastened to the hull, ...

containing the crew and power installation suspended beneath it. It was powered by a

Antoinette Antoinette is a given name, that is a diminutive feminine form of Antoine and Antonia (from Latin ''Antonius''). People with the name include: Nobles * Antoinette de Maignelais, Baroness of Villequier by marriage (1434–1474), mistress of C ...

engine driving a pair of two-bladed aluminium propellers via leather belts.Airship Pioneers
''Flight'' 9 November 1916, p. 979. The pitch of the propellers could be adjusted when the airship was on the ground.

Operational history

''Nulli Secundus'' was first flown on 10 September 1907 at Farnborough, with Capper at the controls, assisted by Cody and Captain King. Two flights were made: during the first, the airship was flown for around three miles at a height of about 200 ft (60 m), the flight being terminated by an engine fault. A second flight was made later in the day, the propeller blades having been reduced in area in order to increase their speed of revolution. A more public appearance was made on 5 October, when it was flown from Farnborough to London. Taking off at 11:00 pm and crewed by Capper, Cody and Lieutenant Waterlow, they made a tour over the city, taking in

Whitehall Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London. The road forms the first part of the A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea. It is the main thoroughfare running south from Trafalgar Square towards Parliament Sq ...

and Buckingham Palace, and after circling St Paul's Cathedral, they attempted to return to Farnborough, but headwinds forced them to land at the

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...

, Sydenham. The flight had lasted for 3 hours and 25 minutes and covered overland. On 10 October, still moored at Crystal Palace to avoid damage in high winds, she was buffeted so severely that some of the guy ropes tore free. Hydrogen was released through escape valves and a slit was made in the envelope to speed up the process. Deflated and partially dismantled, the remains were taken back to Farnborough where it was rebuilt with alterations to become ''Nulli Secundus II''.

Nulli Secundus II

Following proposals for a new airship, it was decided to re-use the envelope of the first airship, which was enlarged to a capacity of 84,768 ft.Walker, P.; ''Early Aviation at Farnborough, Volume I: Balloons, Kites and Airships, Macdonald, 1971.Present Status of Military Aeronautics
''Flight'': 13 March 1909, p. 149. New features included a silk outer skin over the whole structure, a new and revised understructure, a small additional "reserve" gasbag in the space in between, modified control surfaces including a forward elevator, modified drive train from the old engine, and a ground spike. ''Nulli Secundus II'' was flown on 24 July 1908 in front of a crowd of several thousand people including

General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

Horace Smith-Dorrien General Sir Horace Lockwood Smith-Dorrien, (26 May 1858 – 12 August 1930) was a British Army General. One of the few British survivors of the Battle of Isandlwana as a young officer, he also distinguished himself in the Second Boer War. Smit ...

Charles Rolls Charles Stewart Rolls (27 August 1877 – 12 July 1910) was a British motoring and aviation pioneer. With Henry Royce, he co-founded the Rolls-Royce car manufacturing firm. He was the first Briton to be killed in an aeronautical accident wit ...

, and Frank Hedges Butler. The airship made only one subsequent flight, for the purpose of training Navy personnel. It was then scrapped, its engine being used to power Cody's British Army Aeroplane No. 1.

Specifications (''Nulli Secundus I'')

References

Notes

Bibliography

* {{refend 1900s British experimental aircraft Airships of the United Kingdom British military aircraft British Army equipment Aircraft first flown in 1907