Airships may soon be built in Akron again
Cleveland Fed president and chief executive officer Beth M. Hammack toured LTA Research’s Akron facility to learn more about the innovative work happening in the Fourth District.
Nearly 100 years ago, the Goodyear Zeppelin Corporation built the 1,175-foot-long Akron Airdock, making Northeast Ohio a center for development and construction of airships. Two dirigibles, a type of airship, were built and launched from the dock in the 1930s.1 During a meeting and tour, Cleveland Fed president and chief executive officer Beth Hammack learned more about a company that hopes to bring airship production back to Northeast Ohio.
The company, called LTA Research (LTA), has facilities in Ohio, California, and Nevada. Nearly a third of its 300 employees work in Ohio. LTA is currently testing its proof-of-concept airship, Pathfinder 1, in California.
Kyle Kepley of LTA (far left) explains to President Hammack (far right) how the company is creating the next generation of airships; also pictured from the Cleveland Fed are Emily Garr Pacetti, Dani Carlson, and Lisa Barrow (March 4, 2025)
LTA’s employees explained how its Akron team is supporting work on Pathfinder 1 and researching and developing technology to support future airships that are expected to be built in the Akron facility.
Hammack, Barrow, and Garr Pacetti listen to Dan Gutwein of LTA (far right) explain how the company uses lasers to weld titanium parts for the company’s airships (March 4, 2025)
Gutwein (far right) shows Hammack a machine that scans individual parts to ensure that they are made correctly; Barrow is also pictured (March 4, 2025)
LTA airships under development use electric motors. This is one example, LTA officials said, of how airships may have a smaller carbon footprint than traditional aviation vehicles. They also said that in the future, airships may be used for consumer and cargo transportation and humanitarian aid efforts.2
From left, Hammack, Steve Vardavas of LTA, Jim Leigh of the Cleveland Fed, Garr Pacetti, Barrow, Carlson, and Heather Roszczyk of LTA stand in front of the Akron Airdock’s doors (March 4, 2025)
About President Beth M. Hammack’s Around the District tour
President Hammack is visiting communities across the Fourth District as part of her Around the District tour to meet and connect with the people who live and work in all corners of the region and to gain a better understanding of how the economy is working in different communities. The Cleveland Fed, with branches in Cincinnati and Pittsburgh, serves an area that comprises Ohio, western Pennsylvania, eastern Kentucky, and the northern panhandle of West Virginia. Hammack will use this information to inform her policy views and better represent the Fourth District around the Federal Open Market Committee table.
Footnotes
- “Goodyear Airdock.” 2017. National Park Service. US Department of the Interior. https://www.nps.gov/articles/goodyear-airdock.htm Return to 1
- “Our Story.” n.d. Lighter Than Air (LTA) Research. Accessed March 7, 2025. https://www.ltaresearch.com/our-story Return to 2
- Share
Office of the President
Learn about the work of the president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.
Beth M. Hammack
Beth M. Hammack is the president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, one of 12 regional Reserve Banks in the Federal Reserve System.
About Us
The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland (commonly known as the Cleveland Fed) is part of the Federal Reserve System, the central bank of the United States.