January Mystery Airplane

The non-rigid airship, or blimp, came into its own during World War I with the Royal Naval Air Service use of Sea Scout, Sea Scout Zero, North Sea, and Coastal non-rigid

airships for convoy escort, anti-submarine patrol, and coastal reconnaissance. After the Great War, use of blimps expanded, including their use in advertising. In 1925, Goodyear got into the act with the non-rigid ship Pilgrim, which pioneered the use of an enclosed cabin attached to the airship's envelope. It also was inflated with helium.

In 1970, Airship Industries, based in London, began development of what it called a "ne...