What is it about?
The R101 disaster in 1930 ended British interest in developing large airships. The subsequent inquiry failed to establish a definite cause but the broken elevator cable was exonerated because it was believed to have broken in the hydrogen fire after the crash. This is shown to be incorrect. Computer calculations, assuming the cable broke before the crash, confirm the airship's final flight path.
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Why is it important?
The disaster is important in the history of aviation in Britain and has generated a very large volume of serious and more popular publications. None have been wholly successful and all ignored the broken cable. This paper shows that ithe broken cable was the cause of the second and fatal dive.
Perspectives
The fatal dive is often attributed to the Chief Coxswain's decision to cut the engines. Had he maintained or increased power then calculations calculations show that the ship would have survived. This paper confirms that his decision was perfectly correct, given that the cable had broken.
Bryan Lawton
Cranfield University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: R101 Airship Disaster and the Broken Elevator Cable, International Journal for the History of Engineering & Technology, January 2017, Taylor & Francis,
DOI: 10.1080/17581206.2017.1329996.
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