In 1923, the first American-built rigid dirigible was launched in Lakehurst, N.J, later christened the U.S.S. Shenandoah (“daughter of the stars”). It was the first of the Zeppelin type (ZR-1) to use helium gas, of which a supply was was available in the U.S. It was tested in flight the following month, on 3 Sep 1923, and christened 10 Oct 1923. Covered with an aluminum-painted fabric, it was 680 feet long, weighed 36 tons, could bear 55 tons, and carry enough fuel to cruise 5,000 miles at an average speed of 65 mph. It was commanded by Commander Zachery Lansdowne (1888-1925), an early Navy aviator, who died with 14 members of the crew when the airship was struck and destroyed in a violent thunderstorm on 3 Sep 1925 over Caldwell, Ohio, though 29 of the crew survived. America's Forgotten Airship Disaster: The Crash of the USS Shenandoah, by Aaron J. Keirns. - book suggestion.