I.J.N. Nobile N-3 semi-rigid airship, c. 1927, the Imperial Japanese Navy’s first semi-rigid airship, arrived in Japan from Italy during January 1927 and was assembled at Kasumigaura by a team of Italian technicians supervised by the airship’s designer, Umberto Nobile. The N-3 made a successful first-flight in April. On October 22, 1927, while taking part in naval maneuvers south of Tokyo, strong winds forced it to make an emergency landing on Kozushima where, before the crew could secure her in place, a sudden gust carried the airship out to sea and it was totally destroyed.
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Grand Fleet Review, Osaka-Kobe, 1930.
Kaishiki No. 1 biplane & Yamada dirigible, c. 1911.
Graf Zeppelin visits Tokyo, 1929.
“The Navy Department has purchased from Italy the airship ‘N-3’, a sister ship of the famous ‘Norge’ which made a successful flight to the North Pole.
“It invited Major-General H. Nobile and other engineers to assemble the ‘N-3’ at Kasumigaura in Aprilhttps://www.oldtokyo.com/wp-admin/edit.php, 1927 and direct its maiden flight after its completion. This is the first semi-rigid airship Japan has ever possessed.”
– “Growth of Aviation in Japan”, The Asashi English Supplement, 1927