Global Exposure
Already quite famous in the United States, Goodyear’s fleet of Blimps gained worldwide exposure in the 1970s. With the Texas base in operation, there were now three strategically located Blimps, which could easily get to most any television assignment in most cities in the continental United States, and they could even travel to Canada within a few days.
The fleet officially went international in 1972 when the Europa was erected by Wingfoot Lake personnel in Cardington, England. Its mission was to cover the UK and Western Europe from a base established in Capena, Italy, near Rome.
Always on the Move
From 1970 through 1979, Goodyear’s Blimps were active broadcasters at more than 275 televised events across the United States. These included the Super Bowl, the Indianapolis 500, the Sugar Bowl, the Cotton Bowl, U.S. Open Tennis, PGA Golf, Grand Prix racing, the Kentucky Derby and the Daytona 500, just to name a few.
The Blimps were also called on by television networks for service on popular shows of the 1970s such as “The Mike Douglas Show” and “The Lawrence Welk Show”, as well as the 1976 Bicentennial celebration, “Operation Sail” in New York City. All featured the coveted aerial view that only a Goodyear Blimp could provide.
In addition to the television audiences, the Goodyear Blimps became familiar sights to the millions of fans who were attending sporting events across the country. With so much area for three Blimps to cover, they were constantly on the move. As they traveled cross-country, even those living on remote farms, in smaller cities and suburbs got to catch a glimpse of the Blimps as they flew by on their way to their destination.
The Goodyear Blimps were involved in several movies during the 1970s, including “Cold Turkey” (’71) starring Dick Van Dyke; “Black Sunday” (’76) with Bruce Dern and Robert Shaw; “A Star is Born” (’76) with Barbra Steisand; “Thank God It’s Friday” (’78) with Jeff Goldblum; and “Two Minute Warning” (’76) starring Charlton Heston.
The End of an Era?
With the completion of the Texas base, Wingfoot Lake was closed in 1972 and placed in "caretaker" status. Four of the remaining five frame buildings west of the hangar, which were built during World War I, were burned as training exercises for nearby rural volunteer fire departments. Almost all the secondary buildings — including the small hangar, barracks and water tower — were also removed.
The main hangar, having served during peace and war, remained intact but was no longer home to an active blimp. It now sat waiting for the day it would be returned to its originally intended purpose.
At this point, all Goodyear airships were built and maintained at the new hangar in Spring, Texas.
Two New Firsts
During the 1980s, the Goodyear Blimps covered two new events for the first time: The Olympic Games and the World Series.
The Blimps Columbia and America worked together to accomplish the televising of the Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 1984. It marked the first time two Goodyear Blimps teamed up to provide coverage for an event. The 1984 Olympic games were viewed by billions around the world.
In addition, the 1980 World Series was the first to be televised from a Goodyear Blimp. The Enterprise and America worked both ends of the Fall Classic, which pitted the Philadelphia Phillies against the Kansas City Royals. More World Series coverage followed in 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1988 and 1989.
Still Finding Ways to Grow
Throughout the decades, the Goodyear Blimp continued to innovate and expand.
In 1986, Goodyear dedicated its new hangar in Pompano Beach, Florida. The hangar's first resident was the GZ20 Enterprise. Today its home to Goodyear's new fleet of semi-rigid airships, a Wingfoot NT.
Another spectacular event in 1986 brought hundreds of thousands of visitors to the Airdock in Akron, Ohio. The gigantic building was opened to the public for the first time in 50 years to help kick off Goodyear’s annual United Way campaign.
In 1987, Goodyear built and flew a new model blimp, the GZ-22. The new airship outstretched the GZ-20A by 13.5 feet and sported two vectoring turbine engines vs. the fixed piston engines on the GZ-20A. In the air, the most obvious difference was the “X” configuration of the tail fins on the GZ-22 compared to the “Cross” configuration of the GZ-20A’s fins. The new model flew from 1987 until 1999, and it was the only one of its type to ever exist.
Lastly, in 1988 Goodyear introduced its Gyrocam 360 camera and mount, designed to counter the “sailing” effects of a Blimp in motion, which ushered in a new era of enhanced aerial video.
On a historical note, the first event covered using the new system was the 1988 Rose Parade. The event took place 33 years to the day after the Blimp’s first live national telecast, which was the Rose Parade of January 1, 1955.
Saving Lives
1989 was an important year for the Goodyear Blimp. Hovering above Candlestick Park in San Francisco, the Columbia was providing its usual top-notch aerial views of Game 3 of the World Series between the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland Athletics. It would forever be remembered as the Earthquake Series.
On October 17, 1989 at 5:04 p.m. PST a massive earthquake of 6.9 on the Richter scale shook the Bay Area, bringing down buildings and freeways, killing 63 people and injuring 3,757. The Columbia was immediately asked by authorities to assist with emergency relief by providing aerial views of the damage. The live views were used to help determine where emergency services were needed most and were widely credited with saving lives.
Change for the Better
The 1990s was a decade marked with realignment and relocation for Goodyear’s Blimp fleet. The Texas base was closed in 1992 and the Blimp housed there, the airship America, was relocated to Wingfoot Lake. After a long absence, the historic site was once again home to an active airship!
1992 brought a big change to the Los Angeles-based operation. From 1963 into 1992 every replacement assigned to the Los Angeles base was named Columbia. . That changed in 1992, when the replacement for Columbia VIII came carrying the new name, the Eagle.
The decade also saw three more World Series contests covered by Goodyear’s Blimp in 1995, 1997 and 1998, as well as the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia.
Hurricane Andrew
When Hurricane Andrew hit the Florida coast in August 1992, the Goodyear Blimp Stars & Stripes took to the air and used its electronic sign to spread disaster relief messages to the thousands stranded below.
At the request of the American Red Cross, the airship displayed messages in both English and Spanish that directed those below to desperately needed relief supply stations. Once again the Goodyear Blimp was in a critical position with the proper resources to make a difference.
Skytacular Gets a Makeover
In 1996, some of Goodyear's Blimps were upgraded with a sign technology named “Super Skytacular 2.” This was the first Blimp signage to utilize light-emitting diode (LED) technology, which brought advances in weight reduction and picture clarity.
Each side of "Super Skytacular 2" displayed 3,780 LED boards connected by 7.8 miles of wire. Each board was approximately 2.3 inches square and was comprised of 12 LEDs, each group consisting of three color LEDs — red, green, and blue.
The intensity of each LED could be adjusted or “blended” to create a palette of 32,768 possible colors, from which 256 could be simultaneously displayed. Such high resolution allowed the creation of animation and graphics.
Additionally, 1,036 of the 3,780 LED boards were equipped with an extra 36 high-intensity red-orange LEDs, which produce enough light to make messages visible during the day.
Eagle Vision
The Spirit of Goodyear was distinguished from her sister ships by an additional yellow stripe, nose-to-tail along the equator of the envelope. It was also the first to be equipped with Goodyear’s latest advancement in sign technology named EagleVision, which uses high-resolution LED technology for text, graphics and video.
Using improved hardware, state-of-the-art computers and software — along with a generous dose of Goodyear innovation — it produces a high-resolution night sign capable of super-brilliant text, smooth animation and, for the first time, real video!
Programming text messages for the sign is easy. Text is typed directly into a computer file, which sends the information to the lights. Photos and graphics can be scanned into the computer and displayed on the side of the Blimp in a matter of minutes, creating larger-than-life images on the screen. Animation and video are more of a challenge. Animation is constructed from stills in a step-by-step sequence, while video is recorded and translated by software into a format that can be read by the night-sign boards.
Switching to Hi-Def
In the early 2000s,television technology was improving and “hi-definition” was the buzzword of the moment. Television was about to become something to experience rather than merely watch. Sports programming was on the cutting edge, which meant the Goodyear Blimps were on the cutting edge too. The Spirit of Goodyear became the first Blimp to provide hi-definition live video to a national sports event, continuing the technological superiority the Goodyear Blimps had demonstrated for the past 50 years.
Spreading Good from Above
For many decades, the Goodyear Blimp fleet has carried not only the Goodyear name but also those of many deserving nonprofit organizations. The fleet has raised millions of dollars for charity through ride donations and by providing free advertising on its signs. This part of the operation is one of the most cherished aspects of the fleet’s history.
The Blimps work the social media angle when donations are sought for hurricane and tornado relief, among others. Text this phrase-to-that number to donate to a cause is a common message on the Goodyear Blimps. The signage is also used to offer helpful messages to those who are stuck in dangerous weather conditions. Additionally, the “It Can Wait” campaign, which was started by AT&T to discourage drivers from texting while driving, earned a spot on the Blimp’s sign.
A short list of organizations and causes that the Blimps have helped includes Muscular Dystrophy, Toys for Tots, food banks, American Cancer Society, The American Red Cross, The Salvation Army, Support Our Troops, and many more.
The Fleet Reborn
During the first six years of the new millennium, Goodyear renewed its entire fleet with the building and launching of the Spirit of Goodyear in 2000, the Spirit of America in 2002 and the Spirit of Innovation in 2006. The Spirit of Goodyear had the unique honor of being christened by America’s first woman in space, NASA astronaut Dr. Sally Ride.
Based at Goodyear's Wingfoot Lake Airship facility in Suffield, Ohio, the Spirit of Goodyear was strategically located near three major metropolitan areas as well as Akron, Ohio. It was but a few hours away from Detroit, Michigan; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and Cleveland, Ohio, and only a day away from Chicago, Illinois and Indianapolis, Indiana.
The Spirit of Goodyear like the Spirit of Innovation, traveled the eastern part of the United States that was bordered by the Rocky Mountains to the west, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south and Canada to the north. These Goodyear Blimps were not limited to the United States, however, as they occasionally visited Canada and Mexico.
Naming its Blimps is a very personal thing to Goodyear. Each name is a proud handle that represents something important to Goodyear or brings recognition to a proud tradition. The Spirit of Goodyear was so named to honor the tens of thousands of loyal, hardworking associates of The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company.
The Spirit of Goodyear was retired from service in March, 2014.
The Spirit of America was christened September 5, 2002 during a ceremony in Akron, Ohio. The name of the ship was chosen as a tribute to the patriotic spirit of the United States. Performing the christening was Mrs. Letitia Driscoll, mother of NYPD Officer Stephen Driscoll, who was killed in the South Tower of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.
The Spirit of America is based in Carson, California, between Long Beach and downtown Los Angeles.
The last Blimp created during this time, the Spirit of Innovation, calls Pompano Beach, Florida, home. It is the first Goodyear Blimp to be named by the general public through a web-based "Name-the-Blimp" contest and was christened on June 21, 2006 by Lesa France Kennedy, president of International Speedway Corporation and a member of NASCAR's Board of Directors, along with Lynn Keegan, wife of Goodyear Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Bob Keegan.
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