The Navy blimp A-5464 flies over the Convent of the Good Shepherd, located at the North Broad and Bienville Streets in MidCity, on April 24, 1919. It was piloted by New Orleans native Ensign G. U. Bertoniere.
Publicity programs to raise funds for the Victory Liberty Loan campaign during WWI were multiple and innovative. In New Orleans, one of them resulted in the first ever flight of a dirigible balloon over the city.
The dirigible left the naval air station in Pensacola early on the morning of April 24, 1919. It flew a zig zag pattern of 400 miles in order to pass over Gulfport, Biloxi, Bay St. Louis, Pascagoula and Mobile – spending 15 min over each city – and arrived in New Orleans just before 3 p.m. It was escorted by two navy hydroplanes.
The 195-foot blimp flew low over the city, dropping about 1000 Victory Loan pamphlets to people below. As it passed over Canal Street, it dropped even lower. And that’s when the trouble started.
At the corner of Canal and Baronne, a large group of people stood, eyes fixed on the dirigible overhead. An automobile driving down Canal swerved at Baronne, attempting to go the wrong way back up Canal. A patrolman stopped him, and the driver panicked, put the car in reverse and stamped on the gas, crashing his car into a Velvet Ice Cream wagon. The wagon mules started in alarm and headed straight for the crowd of bystanders, where the panic continued to spread. People ran toward safety at the United Cigar stand, mules and wagon following them.
Just before the mules reached the shop, an officer grabbed the bridles and reined them in. In the chaos, four women were knocked down and slightly injured. The eldest of them, with a cut on her mouth, became hysterical and had to be taken home.
The driver of the automobile was arrested and charged with reckless driving, running into, and wounding. He claimed the car was less than a week old and he didn’t really know how to drive.
The dirigible floated off to Pensacola very early the following day, after spending the night moored on the golf course of the New Orleans Country Club. Thousands gathered on the green to see it off, and people all over the city were outside, watching it sail over for the second time with wonder and delight.
