04/02/2026
GOODYEAR BLIMP TOUR
Twenty adventurous Laurel Lake Retirement Community residents went for a tour of Goodyear Wingfoot Lake, Ohio last week. The Goodyear blimp is a very familiar site in our area, as it cruises to and from various major events providing wonderful aerial coverage. Residents were able to learn about the Wingfoot Lake’s fascinating history. The hangar there, built in 1917, serves as the primary maintenance and construction site for Goodyear’s airship fleet. Did you know the floor of the hangar is about the size of 2 football fields side-by-side?
Everyone toured the hangar with the blimp “Wingfoot One” docked inside, learning about the structure and the airship’s fascinating history and features. Residents even got to go inside the blimp’s gondola.
Most people don’t know a whole lot about the blimps and the local locations where they dock. There are actually 3 blimps currently in the US and their hangars are at Wingfoot Lake in Akron, Ohio; Pompano Beach, Florida; and Carson, California.
The massive Akron structure we’re familiar with along Route 224 is an additional local airdock. The Goodyear Airdock is significantly larger - the floor is almost 9 football fields side-by-side!
More info about the Goodyear blimps, is available at Goodyear’s website https://gyblimpeast.azurewebsites.net/behind-the-scenes/ . Additional info about the Goodyear Airdock is at Cleveland Historical https://clevelandhistorical.org/items/show/281
