Weeksville, North Carolina: Old Naval Blimp Airdock
WWII-era naval base for blimps -- two giant hangars. The 900 ft. long one made out of wood burned down in 1995, but the steel hangar remains, now housing an airship company.
- Address:
- 190 T Com Dr., Weeksville, NC
- Directions:
- South of Elizabeth City in Weeksville. Private property. visible from street.
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The main drive up to the building is marked as private. We found it possible to drive around the back between the two buildings. The burned wooden structure is marked by two sets of concrete piers that once supported the hangar doors.
[E Larsen, 12/29/2012]South of Elizabeth City, in the small town of Weeksville, stands what remains of a WWII-era naval base which was used to house blimps that would patrol the coastline in search of German U-boats.
The facility originally housed two hangars, one steel-framed hangar that was 1,040 feet long, 150 feet high and 296 feet wide (20 stories tall according to some articles), and another one which was made of wood and was 900 feet long. Both had the capability to house six airships at any given time. The hangars were conjoined by a 2000' radius mooring pad and were surrounded by 5 smaller mooring pads.
The wooden hangar #2 (which according to some articles is thought to have been the largest wooden structure in the world) burned to the ground in 1995 due to a welding fire. The fire was so intense, it was seen as far away as Norfolk, Virginia.
The site is one of 8 remaining facilities of its type. Currently TCOM, a private airship manufacturer, uses the facility for their Ground Systems Manufacturing and Test Facility where they build blimps and airships for everything from surveillance to sporting events.
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