For a fifth consecutive year, the Goodyear Blimp will once again fly above Le Mans during the race week and race itself, offering not just a fun spectacle for the hundreds of thousands of fans at the track, but a truly special viewpoint for guests and VIPs with a flight ticket.
Goodyear’s aerial ambassador for over a century
The very first Goodyear Blimps first took flight in the 1910s and Goodyear was a key pioneer in developing this new form of air travel. By the 1950s, the Goodyear Blimp began to be used for aerial television coverage, debuting with the Rose Parade and Rose Bowl American college football game in 1955 as the first aerial camera platform for the industry. Since then, the Goodyear Blimp has been a permanent fixture at events from the Super Bowl to Royal Weddings and everything in between.
Today, three Goodyear Blimps operate across the United States from bases in Ohio, Florida and California, visiting around 200 events each year. In 2020, a fourth Goodyear Blimp debuted in Europe, not only flying over the 24-hour races at Le Mans and the Nürburgring but also making hugely popular visits to cities like London, Copenhagen and Milan.
Now based at a new home at Essen/Mülheim Airport in Germany’s Rhine-Ruhr region, the European Goodyear Blimp is the largest of its kind in the world today, measuring 75 metres long, 19.5 metres wide and 17.4 metres high. It has a total volume of 8,425 m3, filled with helium, a non-flammable gas used in all modern airships for maximum safety.
Technically speaking, the model is a Zeppelin NT semi-rigid airship, and is identical to the three Goodyear Blimps operating in the United States. It’s powered by three 200 hp engines, allowing for a maximum speed of 125 km/h and a range of 1,000 km. It typically flies following major roads and highways, to a maximum altitude of 3,000 metres, allowing a ground crew to follow below and provide navigation and communication assistance.
A packed agenda for Le Mans
Across Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Le Mans, the Goodyear Blimp has a full schedule, with a planned total of more than 20 flying hours. With space for 14 passengers at a time, a select group of VIP guests and members of the media will be given the opportunity to watch the on-track action from its large panoramic windows, from 300 metres above.
Luca Andreoni, Head of Brand Consumer Europe, Goodyear: “The Goodyear Blimp is a true icon that has been our aerial ambassador at wide-ranging international sporting and cultural events for decades. Since Goodyear returned to the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2020, it’s also been a popular fixture at Circuit de la Sarthe, too. This year, for Goodyear’s biggest Le Mans since our return, we’re excited to keep that up. If you’re at the track, be sure to look up!”