You’ve seen it. That giant, lazy blue-and-gold cigar floating over a stadium, making everyone in the stands point upward like they’ve never seen a balloon before. It’s an American icon. Honestly, though, if you’re looking for a "blimp," you’re actually looking for something that doesn't technically exist anymore.
Yeah, you heard me right.
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Since 2017, the "Goodyear Blimp" hasn’t actually been a blimp. The old-school GZ-20 models—those soft-bodied inflatables that stayed up purely because of gas pressure—are retired. They’ve been replaced by a fleet of high-tech semi-rigid airships. But "Goodyear Semi-Rigid Airship" sounds like a boring corporate memo, so we all still call them blimps.
If you're scanning the horizon right now, wondering where are the Goodyear blimps today, the answer depends on which coast you're standing on. There are three of these giants based in the United States, plus one over in Europe. They don't just wander aimlessly; they live in three very specific spots when they aren't working the Super Bowl or the Daytona 500.
The Three U.S. Bases: Where They Live
Goodyear keeps its fleet strategically spread out. They’ve got the East Coast, the West Coast, and the home turf in the Midwest covered.
Carson, California: The West Coast Hub
If you’re driving on the 405 near Los Angeles, you’ve probably seen the Carson base. This is the home of Wingfoot Three (N3A). It’s one of the most visible airship bases in the world because it sits right in the middle of a massive commuter corridor.
This base has been around since 1968. If you see an airship over the Rose Bowl or an Oscars red carpet, it almost certainly came from here. Wingfoot Three is the youngest of the U.S. fleet, christened in 2018. It’s a beast. It’s longer than a football field and can hit speeds around 73 mph, which is basically warp speed for something that usually moves at the pace of a lawnmower.
Pompano Beach, Florida: The Sunshine State Fleet
Down in Florida, Wingfoot Two (N2A) handles the duties. Stationed at the Pompano Beach Airpark since 1979, this airship is the workhorse of the South. It spends its days hovering over the crowded beaches of Miami and Fort Lauderdale or heading up to Orlando for PGA events.
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There’s something kinda cool about the Pompano base—it’s the only one on the East Coast. If you’re at a NASCAR race in Homestead or a Dolphins game, look up. That’s Wingfoot Two.
Suffield/Akron, Ohio: The Mother Ship
The heart of the operation is the Wingfoot Lake Airship Base in Suffield, Ohio, near Akron. This is where Wingfoot One (N1A) stays. This isn't just a garage; it’s a historic site. Built in 1917, the hangar is one of the oldest active aircraft facilities on the planet.
Wingfoot One is special this year, too. To celebrate the 100th anniversary of Goodyear’s airship program in 2025-2026, it’s been sporting a "vintage" wrap. It’s painted black and silver, modeled after the Pilgrim, which was Goodyear’s very first branded commercial airship back in 1925. It’s got a real retro-futuristic vibe that looks amazing against a blue Ohio sky.
The Secret Fourth Member: Goodyear Europe
Most people don't realize there’s a fourth sibling. Based in Essen, Germany, the "Europe Blimp" (D-LZFN) handles the international side of things. It’s operated in partnership with Deutsche Zeppelin-Reederei. If you’re watching the 24 Hours of Le Mans or a big Formula 1 race in Europe, that’s the one providing those sweeping aerial shots. It’s a bit of a celebrity over there since airships are even rarer in Europe than they are in the States.
Why You Can’t Always Find Them
You might check the bases and find them empty. That’s because these things are nomads.
A blimp doesn't just fly to a game and come back. If Wingfoot Three is covering a golf tournament in Arizona, it’s going to be gone for weeks. It travels with a massive ground crew—about 20 to 25 people—including pilots, technicians, and a "bus" that acts as a mobile command center.
They sleep in hotels. They park at local municipal airports. Tracking them can be a bit of a game for aviation nerds.
Tracking the Blimps in Real-Time
If you want to know exactly where they are this second, you don't have to guess. They have tail numbers just like any other plane. You can go to a site like FlightAware or Flightradar24 and type in the following registrations:
- N1A (Wingfoot One - Ohio)
- N2A (Wingfoot Two - Florida)
- N3A (Wingfoot Three - California)
- D-LZFN (Europe Blimp - Germany)
Kinda funny, right? You can see a 246-foot-long airship on a digital map just like a Delta flight. Usually, you’ll see them doing circles over a specific stadium or "creeping" along a coastline at about 1,000 feet.
The "Not-a-Blimp" Controversy
I mentioned earlier that these aren't "true" blimps. Let’s get into the weeds on that because it actually matters for how they fly.
A traditional blimp is just a big bag of gas. If you let the helium out, it collapses like a dead jellyfish. The new Wingfoot class airships are Zeppelin NT (New Technology) models. They have an internal frame made of carbon fiber and aluminum.
Why does this matter?
- Speed: The old blimps topped out at 50 mph. The new ones hit 73 mph.
- Control: They have three engines with swiveling propellers. They can take off and land vertically like a helicopter.
- Capacity: They hold 12 people now, whereas the old ones barely fit seven and felt a lot more cramped.
Goodyear spent a fortune (reportedly around $21 million per ship) to upgrade. They did it because the old blimps were getting harder to maintain and couldn't handle the heavy, high-definition camera equipment modern TV networks demand.
Can You Get a Ride?
Probably not.
This is the question everyone asks. "How do I get on that thing?"
Honestly, it’s nearly impossible. Goodyear doesn't sell tickets. The rides are strictly for "invited guests"—usually corporate partners, media members, or winners of very specific charity auctions. If you want to ride a Zeppelin, you actually have a better shot in Germany, where the Zeppelin NT company operates commercial tours for the public. In the U.S., you basically have to know someone who knows someone, or be extremely lucky with a non-profit raffle.
What’s Next for the Fleet?
We are currently in the middle of a huge milestone. 2025 marked 100 years of the Goodyear Blimp program. Because of that, the fleet is busier than ever. You'll see them making "surprise" appearances at smaller community events and airshows like EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, which they’ve been frequenting lately.
The company is also leaning hard into the "vintage" look for Wingfoot One, so if you see a silver airship that looks like it flew out of a 1920s newsreel, don't panic. It's just a 100th-anniversary makeover.
How to Spot One Today
If you really want to see one, here is your checklist:
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- Check the Schedule: Goodyear has a dedicated "Blimp Schedule" page on their website. It’s not always 100% up to the minute, but it gives you the broad strokes of which city they’re hitting next.
- Watch the Weather: These things are giant sails. If it’s really windy or there’s a storm anywhere nearby, they stay on the ground. They are fair-weather fans.
- Follow Social Media: The @GoodyearBlimp accounts on X (Twitter) and Instagram are surprisingly active. The crew often posts photos of where they’re docked for the night.
- Look for the "Glow": If a blimp is moored at a local airport overnight, they often keep the internal lights on or use the "Eaglevision" LED sign on the side. It looks like a giant, glowing neon sign in the middle of a dark airfield. It's honestly a bit surreal to see in person.
The Goodyear blimps are a weird mix of old-school nostalgia and high-tech engineering. They shouldn't really exist in a world of drones and satellites, but they do. And honestly, the world is a little more interesting because of it.
If you're near Carson, Pompano, or Akron, keep your eyes on the horizon. If not, check those tail numbers on a flight tracker—you might be surprised to find one is hovering over your city for a random college game this weekend.
Next Steps for Enthusiasts:
- Track by Tail Number: Open a flight tracking app and search for N1A, N2A, or N3A to see their current flight path and altitude.
- Visit a Base: While you can’t go inside the hangars without an invite, the Carson and Pompano bases are easily visible from public roads. It's a great spot for aviation photography.
- Monitor the 100th Anniversary Tour: Keep an eye on the Ohio-based Wingfoot One’s "Pilgrim" vintage schedule, as it is making limited-time appearances across the Midwest throughout 2026.