In early 1942, during the darkest days of World War II, for the people of the Jersey Shore the blimp had become a symbol of the battle to drive German U-boats away from the coast. From their base at Naval Air Station Lakehurst in Ocean County, these powered balloons cruised over the beaches and hovered above the vital tankers traveling to the East Coast refineries. As the numbers of blimps increased, the naval base also served as a training site for the pilots needed to man the airships.

It is a common misconception that the United States used only the rare and expensive nonflammable helium in its…