Kirov Saga: Darkest Hour: Altered States - Volume II (Kirov Series) by John Schettler Page B
Authors: John Schettler
Ads: Link
expanded
as the airship rose to seek out the fast moving jet streams above. If they
began with 100% inflation their climb would be much easier, but they would
later have to slowly vent helium to prevent the gas bags from overfilling with
expansion, and helium was too valuable to waste.
So instead they took off at 90%
inflation, or 95% on a short run like this where they would not be gaining much
altitude. They would simply drop ballast to facilitate the climb, and then
special air condensers on top of the ship could distill water from the
atmosphere to take on additional ballast. They could even harvest rain in
stormy weather, braving the certain threat of lightning to get open the rain
catches to collect all the fresh water needed.
Up in a jet stream the airships
could make remarkable speed, some achieving 160KPH with favorable prevailing
winds along their intended heading. On their own power using four powerful ram
air turbines, they could make over 70 knots, or 135KPH at lower altitudes, much
slower than any plane, but twice the speed of even the fastest ocean going
ships, which made the airship a very useful scouting vessel in a naval
reconnaissance role. It’s endurance could outlast most any other aircraft of
its day, but one drawback was that it was highly visible in the sky, and also
easily detected with the early development of radar.
Air Commandant Bogrov was soon
satisfied that all was well, and he turned to the Admiral seated at the
plotting table behind him on the bridge.
“ Abakan is aloft, sir, and
I make it a little under an hour before we rendezvous with Angara and Talmenka .”
“Very well, Mister Bogrov. In
spite of the circumstances I will want all aeroguns manned and ready at all
times.”
“We will remain at full action
stations throughout the journey, sir. All systems manned.”
More than a means of conveyance, Abakan was also a fighting ship, with one turret mounting a single 105mm recoilless
rifle on the forward gun gondola, three more 76mm beneath the long main gondola
and another two on the aft gondola. Normal artillery using heavy hydraulic gun
recoil carriages were simply too cumbersome, and the recoil of such weapons
would have thrown the ship off its axis, causing violent swings in the gondolas
and jarring vibrations that made it completely impractical to use them.
The solution was the Kurchevski ‘Dynamic
Reaction Cannon,’ (DRP), mounted in pods beneath the gondolas. The guns could
have their back flash vented safely into the open air by means of a simple
manifold that diverted the stream downward beneath the gun pod, and the pod
itself could rotate a full 360 degrees. The weapons also offered stability and
light weight, yet sacrificed range to do so. Being largely designed for ground
bombardment, they could still engage other zeppelins, but with maximum ranges
between 4000 and 6000 meters. Another drawback was that the guns could not
elevate well with the gondolas above them and the massive bulk of the airship.
So an airship duel was always a struggle to gain superior elevation on the enemy
ship where you could blast the big target below while remaining safe from all
but small caliber return fire. To correct this firing arc defect, one or more
76mm recoilless rifles were positioned right atop the airship, on a reinforced
platform anchored to the central Duralumin frame.
Above the gondola structures,
the interior of the rigid Duralumin airframe could also be accessed from the
long “keelway” that allowed the crew to move from the nose of the ship to its
tail. Ladders up allowed crews to man the 20mm cannons on the top of the ship,
one fore and one aft, and a battery of four machine guns. There were eight more
12.7mm machine guns positioned along the sides of the main the airframe in
small dimples, and accessible by ladders positioned outside the main gas bag
sectors.
The ship could also deploy bombs
for ground attack, fledgling Katyusha style rockets arrayed in light
as the airship rose to seek out the fast moving jet streams above. If they
began with 100% inflation their climb would be much easier, but they would
later have to slowly vent helium to prevent the gas bags from overfilling with
expansion, and helium was too valuable to waste.
So instead they took off at 90%
inflation, or 95% on a short run like this where they would not be gaining much
altitude. They would simply drop ballast to facilitate the climb, and then
special air condensers on top of the ship could distill water from the
atmosphere to take on additional ballast. They could even harvest rain in
stormy weather, braving the certain threat of lightning to get open the rain
catches to collect all the fresh water needed.
Up in a jet stream the airships
could make remarkable speed, some achieving 160KPH with favorable prevailing
winds along their intended heading. On their own power using four powerful ram
air turbines, they could make over 70 knots, or 135KPH at lower altitudes, much
slower than any plane, but twice the speed of even the fastest ocean going
ships, which made the airship a very useful scouting vessel in a naval
reconnaissance role. It’s endurance could outlast most any other aircraft of
its day, but one drawback was that it was highly visible in the sky, and also
easily detected with the early development of radar.
Air Commandant Bogrov was soon
satisfied that all was well, and he turned to the Admiral seated at the
plotting table behind him on the bridge.
“ Abakan is aloft, sir, and
I make it a little under an hour before we rendezvous with Angara and Talmenka .”
“Very well, Mister Bogrov. In
spite of the circumstances I will want all aeroguns manned and ready at all
times.”
“We will remain at full action
stations throughout the journey, sir. All systems manned.”
More than a means of conveyance, Abakan was also a fighting ship, with one turret mounting a single 105mm recoilless
rifle on the forward gun gondola, three more 76mm beneath the long main gondola
and another two on the aft gondola. Normal artillery using heavy hydraulic gun
recoil carriages were simply too cumbersome, and the recoil of such weapons
would have thrown the ship off its axis, causing violent swings in the gondolas
and jarring vibrations that made it completely impractical to use them.
The solution was the Kurchevski ‘Dynamic
Reaction Cannon,’ (DRP), mounted in pods beneath the gondolas. The guns could
have their back flash vented safely into the open air by means of a simple
manifold that diverted the stream downward beneath the gun pod, and the pod
itself could rotate a full 360 degrees. The weapons also offered stability and
light weight, yet sacrificed range to do so. Being largely designed for ground
bombardment, they could still engage other zeppelins, but with maximum ranges
between 4000 and 6000 meters. Another drawback was that the guns could not
elevate well with the gondolas above them and the massive bulk of the airship.
So an airship duel was always a struggle to gain superior elevation on the enemy
ship where you could blast the big target below while remaining safe from all
but small caliber return fire. To correct this firing arc defect, one or more
76mm recoilless rifles were positioned right atop the airship, on a reinforced
platform anchored to the central Duralumin frame.
Above the gondola structures,
the interior of the rigid Duralumin airframe could also be accessed from the
long “keelway” that allowed the crew to move from the nose of the ship to its
tail. Ladders up allowed crews to man the 20mm cannons on the top of the ship,
one fore and one aft, and a battery of four machine guns. There were eight more
12.7mm machine guns positioned along the sides of the main the airframe in
small dimples, and accessible by ladders positioned outside the main gas bag
sectors.
The ship could also deploy bombs
for ground attack, fledgling Katyusha style rockets arrayed in light
Similar Books
