USS Shenandoah at her mooring mast in Tacoma, Washington State, USA. This US Navy rigid airship was built from 1922 to 1923, and operated until it crashed in 1925. Its 1924 flight from New Jersey to Washington State was the first sighting of a rigid airship for many in the USA. The USS Shenandoah (also called the ZR-1) was 207 metres long, with its structure built from duraluminium with a cloth cotton cover. The gas used for lift was helium, rather than hydrogen. It carried a crew of 25, had a range of 8000 kilometres, and was armed with machine guns and bombs. This photograph is from the Bain News Service, one of the USA's earliest news picture libraries.