The Vaniman Lifeboat

The historic Vaniman lifeboat was part of two early attempts to cross the Atlantic by airships. The earliest attempt was made by the airship America in 1910, and the first wireless message from a powered aircraft was sent from the radio position in the lifeboat. The second attempt was the flight of the Akron, the first Goodyear airship, in 1912. The lifeboat is 27 feet long with a 6-foot beam and is constructed of three thicknesses of mahogany veneer.  It was donated to the National Air and Space Museum in June 2010.