Editing R38-class airship (section)

== Sale to United States ==
The [[United States Navy]] had decided that it wanted to add rigid airships to its fleet and originally hoped to get two [[Zeppelins]] as part of [[war reparations]], but these had been deliberately destroyed by their crews in 1919<ref>Swanborough, G. and Bowers, P. M. ''United States Navy Aircraft since 1912'' (2nd ed.), p. 587.  London: Putnam, 1976. {{ISBN|978-0-370-10054-8}}.</ref> in actions connected with the [[scuttling of the German fleet at Scapa Flow]]. An order was placed with the Zeppelin company for a new craft, to be paid for by the Germans (which became [[USS Los Angeles (ZR-3)|USS ''Los Angeles'']]), and, to go with it, they also planned to build one in the United States (which became [[USS Shenandoah (ZR-1)|USS ''Shenandoah'']]). With the news of the impending termination of ''R.38''{{'}}s construction, the possibility of taking over the project was investigated. An agreement was reached in October 1919 for its purchase for £300,000,<ref>Robinson 1973, p. 169</ref> and work on the airship was resumed. As work progressed the US Navy began checking the documentation given them by the British. Following significant girder failures during testing Commander Jerome Hunsacker and Charles Burgess raised questions over the strength of ''R.38''. Burgess concluded that "This investigation indicates that the transverses of the R.38 are only just strong enough, ''and have no factor of safety''{{-"}}.<ref>Douglas H. Robinson, and Charles L. Keller (1982). ''"Up Ship!": U.S. Navy Rigid Airships 1919–1935''. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. p. 35.</ref>