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A ride on Goodyear's Ohio-based Blimp "Spirit of Goodyear" was the high-flying birthday present for these 25
lucky Leap Day babies, who stood in line most of the night for a chance for a sky-high celebration.
Goodyear made this offer to the first 25 people born on
Feb. 29, who were in line when the doors to the blimp
base opened at 8 am.
Although the temperature was in the 20s, the first person
in line arrived at 7 pm, 13 hours before the gates
opened. The oldest leaper pictured was born in 1932, the youngest in 1996.
This was the first time in the nearly 80 years the Goodyear blimps have been flying that this unique Leap Year
Day celebration was held.
For almost 80 years, Goodyear blimps have adorned the skies as very visible corporate symbols of the tire and
rubber company that began operations in 1898.
Today, these graceful giants travel more than 100,000 miles across the United States per year as Goodyear's
"Aerial Ambassadors."
The blimp tradition began in 1925 when Goodyear built its first helium-filled public relations airship, the Pilgrim.
The tire company painted its name on the side and began barnstorming the United States. Humble beginnings
to an illustrious history.
Over the years, Goodyear built more than 300 airships, more than any other company in the world. Akron, Ohio,
the company's world headquarters, was the center of blimp manufacturing for several decades.
During World War II many of the Goodyear-built airships provided the U.S. Navy with a unique aerial surveillance
capability. Often used as convoy escorts, the blimps were able to look down on the ocean surface and spot a
rising submarine and radio its position to the convoy's surface ships. . . in essence acting as an early warning
system.
Modern surveillance technology eventually eclipsed the advantages of the airship fleet, and in 1962 the Navy
discontinued the program.
Today, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company no longer mass-produces airships. In the United States it
operates three well-recognized blimps: the Spirit of Goodyear, based in Akron, Ohio; the Spirit of America,
based in Carson, California; and the Stars & Stripes, in Pompano Beach, Florida.
*From THE WEBSTER'S NEW WORLD CHILDREN'S DICTIONARY, Copyright 1991 by Simon & Schuster Inc.
Courtesy Macmillan Reference USA, a Simon & Shuster Macmillan Company.
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