The Zeppelin ''LZ 4'' was a German experimental
airship
An airship or dirigible balloon is a type of aerostat or lighter-than-air aircraft that can navigate through the air under its own power. Aerostats gain their lift from a lifting gas that is less dense than the surrounding air.
In early ...
constructed under the direction of
Ferdinand von Zeppelin
Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin (german: Ferdinand Adolf Heinrich August Graf von Zeppelin; 8 July 1838 – 8 March 1917) was a German general and later inventor of the Zeppelin rigid airships. His name soon became synonymous with airships a ...
. First flown on 20 June 1908, it made a series of successful flights including a 12-hour flight over
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
. It was destroyed when it caught fire after landing to carry out engine repairs during a projected 24-hour endurance trial. This disaster proved fortunate for Zeppelin: donations by the German public raised 6.5 million marks, so guaranteeing the future of his development of airships.
Background
The successful flights of ''
LZ 3'' in 1906 had produced a change in the official attitude to Count Zeppelin's work, and a grant of 500,000 marks had been voted by the
Reichstag. However, a condition of purchase by the government was the completion of a 24-hour trial flight. This was beyond the capabilities of ''LZ 3'', so work was started on a larger airship with greater fuel capacity.
Design and development
![Zeppelin airship, model 4, with inset bust portrait of Graf Zeppelin LCCN2002722155 (cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/Zeppelin_airship%2C_model_4%2C_with_inset_bust_portrait_of_Graf_Zeppelin_LCCN2002722155_%28cropped%29.jpg)
Construction of ''LZ 4'' was started in November 1907. The design closely followed that of ''
LZ 3'', but with increased diameter and length and having 17 gasbags. A central crew cabin was added in the middle of the keel, from which a ladder ran up through the envelope to an observation platform on top of the hull, intended for making star-sightings for navigational purposes. Initially, small rectangular rudders were fitted at either end of the hull: these proved inadequate to control the airship and were removed and replaced by single rudders mounted between the tips of the biplane horizontal stabilisers at the stern. Later each of these was replaced by a pair of rudders, and large fixed fins bearing a large oval rudder fitted at the stern.
Operational history
''LZ 4'' first flew on 20 June 1908, when a flight lasting 18 minutes revealed the inadequacy of its steering arrangements. After modifications further trials were made on 23 and 29 June, and on 1 July a spectacular 12 hour cross-country flight was made during which it was flown over
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
to
Zürich
Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...
and then back to Lake Constance, covering 386 km (240 mi) and reaching an altitude of 795 m (2,600 ft).
[Robinson 1973 p. 36.]
On 13 July 1908, the airship was reinflated with fresh hydrogen to ensure maximum lift for the planned 24-hour endurance trial, which was to be a return flight to
Mainz
Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.
Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...
. Shortly after setting off the next morning a fan broke on the forward engine and it had to turn back. The following day it was damaged while being manoeuvered out of its hangar: repairs were not completed until the end of the month. The trial flight finally started on 4 August, when ''LZ 4'' lifted off at 06:22 in the morning, carrying 12 people and sufficient fuel for 31 hours of flight.
The flight to Zürich had excited considerable public interest, and large crowds gathered along the route to witness the flight, which took it over
Konstanz
Konstanz (, , locally: ; also written as Constance in English) is a university city with approximately 83,000 inhabitants located at the western end of Lake Constance in the south of Germany. The city houses the University of Konstanz and was th ...
,
Schaffhausen
Schaffhausen (; gsw, Schafuuse; french: Schaffhouse; it, Sciaffusa; rm, Schaffusa; en, Shaffhouse) is a list of towns in Switzerland, town with historic roots, a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in northern Switzerland, and the ...
,
Basel
, french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese
, neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...
and
Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...
. Shortly after passing Strasbourg the forward engine had to be stopped since the fuel tank in the engine gondola had been exhausted, and needed to be refilled. At this point the airship was flying light due to the heat of the sun having caused the hydrogen to expand, and was being held at a low altitude by dynamic downforce generated by flying in a nose-down attitude: with the loss of the power of one engine, it rose to an altitude of , venting gas from the relief valves as it did so. At 1:58 p.m the aft engine had to be stopped for refuelling: this time the airship rose to , with a further loss of hydrogen. Two further engine stoppages caused further loss of gas: by now ''LZ 4'' was only being kept in the air by dynamic lift generated by flying with a nose-up attitude, the resultant
drag reducing its speed to , and at 5:24 pm a landing was made on the
Rhine
), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source1_coordinates=
, source1_elevation =
, source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein
, source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source2_coordinates=
, so ...
near
Oppenheim
Oppenheim () is a town in the Mainz-Bingen district of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The town is a well-known wine center, being the home of the German Winegrowing Museum, and is particularly known for the wines from the Oppenheimer Krötenbru ...
, short of Mainz. All superfluous items and five crew members were unloaded, and the flight was resumed at 10:20. Mainz was reached half an hour later, and the ship turned to begin its return journey. Further engine problems followed: a crank bearing in the forward engine melted at 1:27 am, reducing airspeed to about and it was decided to land to have the engine repaired by engineers from the Daimler works at
Untertürkheim
Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the Swab ...
. Accordingly, ''LZ 4'' was set down at 7:51 am at
Echterdingen
Leinfelden-Echterdingen (Swabian: ''Laefälda-Ächdordeng'') is a town in the district of Esslingen, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located approximately 10 km south of Stuttgart, near the Stuttgart Airport and directly adjacent to t ...
.
The airship was tethered and engineers removed the forward engine to make repairs, but during the afternoon ''LZ 4'' was torn from its moorings by a gust of wind. The soldiers present as a ground handling party could not hold it down, but it was brought to earth by a crew member who had remained on board. Unfortunately, the ship came into contact with a half-dead pear tree while landing, which damaged some of the gasbags, and it immediately caught fire. The cause of ignition was later ascribed to a
static charge
Static electricity is an imbalance of electric charges within or on the surface of a material or between materials. The charge remains until it is able to move away by means of an electric current or electrical discharge. Static electricity is na ...
being produced when the rubberised cotton of the gasbags was torn.
The disaster took place in front of an estimated 40 to 50 thousand spectators and produced an extraordinary wave of nationalistic support for Zeppelin's work. Unsolicited donations from the public poured in: enough had been received within 24 hours to rebuild the airship, and the eventual total was over 6 million marks were donated, at last providing Zeppelin with a sound financial base for his experiments.
[Robinson 1973 p. 41.]
Specifications
See also
Notes
References
* Robinson, Douglas H. ''Giants in the Sky'' Henley-on-Thames: Foulis, 1973
* Fritzsche, Peter. ''A Nation of Fliers'' Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1992
Further reading
*Brooks, Peter W. ''Zeppelin: Rigid Airships 1893–1940'', Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institute Press, 1992
{{LZ Navbox
1900s German experimental aircraft
Zeppelins
1909 in Germany
Aircraft first flown in 1908