Konstanz is the birthplace of Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin (1838-1917), the constructor of the Zeppelin airships.
Zeppelin began developing the idea of a rigid airship in 1874 and developed it in detail by 1893. It was patented in Germany in 1895 and the United States in 1899. Zeppelins were first flown commercially in 1910 by Deutsche Luftschiffahrts-AG (DELAG), the world's first airline in revenue service. By 1914, DELAG carried over 10 000 fare-paying customers on over 1500 flights. They were put into service during World War I as bombers and as scouts. Zeppelins are credited with killing over 500 Britain citizens on numerous bombing raids over the United Kingdom.
Restrictions were placed on Zeppelin construction as a part of the Treaty of Versailles and not lifted until 1926. Larger Zeppelin's were designed and constructed. During the 1930s, LZ 129 Hindenburg operated regular transatlantic flights from Germany to North America and Brazil. The spire of the Empire State Building in New York City was originally designed to serve as a mooring mast for Zeppelins. Due to high winds, that idea was abandoned.
In 1937, in Manchester Township, New Jersey, the LZ 129 Hindenburg - the flag ship of the Hindenburg class, caught fire and ignited the hydrogen, and was destroyed during its attempt to dock with its mooring mast Naval Air Station Lakehurst. Of the 97 people aboard (36 passengers and 61 crew), 35 were killed (13 passengers and 22 crew), including one fatality on the ground.
Due to the Hindenburg disaster and changes in the political and economic climate in Germany in the late 1930s, the Zeppelins fell out of favour and disappeared.
Comments
Post a Comment