Restoration of Rare Airship Shines Light on WWII K-Ship Patrols

K-class blimps were deployed to hunt U-boats along the U.S. West Coast.

Friday, February 07, 2025 at 01:49 PM ET

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The 10 crew members of K-Ships served in vital anti-submarine roles during WWII in the Atlantic. Ground crew are shown here preparing a K-ship before a patrol. Photographed October 8-14, 1943. [Courtesy: National Archives and Records Administration]

Key Takeaways:

The Moffett Field Historical Society is restoring the control car of *K-22*, a WWII-era Navy blimp whose salvaged parts were rediscovered inside Hangar One during its renovation.
*K-22* was part of the K-ship blimp fleet based at Moffett Field, which conducted vital antisubmarine patrols along the U.S. West Coast during World War II.
The multi-year restoration project, which involves repairing damaged sections and fabricating missing parts based on historical plans, aims to preserve an important, often overlooked chapter of Moffett Field's lighter-than-air history.

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The legacy of Moffett Federal Airfield (KNUQ) in Mountain View, California, is most often associated with Hangar One, the giant 1930s structure built to house the Navy airship USS Macon.

The Macon, however, is just one line in the Moffett story. During World War II, the field was home to the Navy K-ships—blimps that patrolled the West Coast of the U.S. as part of antisubmarine warfare.