The Zeppelin LZ 5, tactical number Z II, was a German experimental military

rigid airship A rigid airship is a type of airship (or dirigible) in which the Aerostat, envelope is supported by an internal framework rather than by being kept in shape by the pressure of the lifting gas within the envelope, as in blimps (also called pres ...

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 ...

. After having made numerous successfull trips, ''LZ 5'' broke loose from its

mooring A mooring is any permanent structure to which a vessel may be secured. Examples include quays, wharfs, jetties, piers, anchor buoys, and mooring buoys. A ship is secured to a mooring to forestall free movement of the ship on the water. An ''an ...

s in a storm and subsequentely crashed on 25 April 1910.

Construction

LZ 5 was a C-Class zeppelin built by

Luftschiffbau Zeppelin Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH is a German aircraft manufacturing company. It is perhaps best known for its leading role in the design and manufacture of rigid airships, commonly referred to as ''Zeppelins'' due to the company's prominence. The name ...

in Manzell near

Friedrichshafen Friedrichshafen ( or ; Low Alemannic: ''Hafe'' or ''Fridrichshafe'') is a city on the northern shoreline of Lake Constance (the ''Bodensee'') in Southern Germany, near the borders of both Switzerland and Austria. It is the district capital (''K ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. She was laid down in 1908 and completed by 26 May 1909. The airship measured in length and had a diameter of . She was equipped with two Daimler engines, producing 105 hp and 77 kW each. The airship could reach a speed of 13.5m/s (48.6 km/h) and a maximum height of . ''LZ 5'' had a gas volume of 15,000 m³ of

hydrogen Hydrogen is the chemical element with the symbol H and atomic number 1. Hydrogen is the lightest element. At standard conditions hydrogen is a gas of diatomic molecules having the formula . It is colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic ...

contained in the envelope of the airship. Her framework was made of the light alloy

aluminium Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. I ...

and covered by fabric skin. She was equipped with two gondolas and could carry a crew of eight. LZ 5 Göppingen 1909

Career

LZ 5 conducted its first flight on 26 May 1909 at Lake Constance, Germany. After which she made a successful endurance journey from 29 May to 2 June 1909 under the command of

Ludwig Dürr Ludwig Dürr (4 June 1878 in Stuttgart – 1 January 1956 in Friedrichshafen) was a German airship designer. Life and career After completing training as a mechanic, Dürr continued his training at the Königliche Baugewerkschule (Royal School ...

and carrying

and six of his employees, travelling the long distance between Lake Constance and

Bitterfeld Bitterfeld () is a town in the district of Anhalt-Bitterfeld, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 July 2007 it has been part of the town of Bitterfeld-Wolfen. It is situated approximately 25 km south of Dessau, and 30 km northeast of Halle ( ...

, Germany and back. Its initial goal had been to reach Berlin, but due to fuel shortage and strong headwinds, the airship had to turn back. In total ''LZ 5'' flew for 1,194 km in 38 hours and 40 minutes. However a small incident occurred during this flight, when the airship collided with a

pear tree Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in the Northern Hemisphere in late summer into October. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the family Rosaceae, bearing the po ...

near

Göppingen Göppingen (Swabian: ''Geppenge'' or ''Gebbenga'') is a town in southern Germany, part of the Stuttgart Region of Baden-Württemberg. It is the capital of the district Göppingen. Göppingen is home to the toy company Märklin, and it is the bi ...

, Germany, rupturing three gas cells. The damage was quickly patched up with some hop sticks and after Captain Dürr returned to the repaired ship after having gone off to buy a chocolate bar, the airship made it back to Lake Constance without further incident. After ''LZ 5'' was fully repaired, it was sold to the military administration in

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

, Germany on 5 August 1909 and renamed ''Z II''. During her relocation from Lake Constance to Cologne for her military service, the airship made a stop at the International Aviation Exhibition in

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

, Germany. During her time in the army, ''Z II'' made a total of 16 more trips, covering a total distance of 2,478 km. Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1978-101-14, Zeppelin Katastrophe in Weilburg

Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1978-101-14, Zeppelin Katastrophe in Weilburg

Loss

On 24 April 1910 ''Z II'' was travelling from Bad Homburg, Germany to Cologne, Germany when a powerful storm arose, forcing the airship to land in an open field near

Limburg an der Lahn Limburg an der Lahn (officially abbreviated ''Limburg a. d. Lahn'') is the district seat of Limburg-Weilburg in Hesse, Germany. Geography Location Limburg lies in western Hessen between the Taunus and the Westerwald on the river Lahn. The t ...

, Germany. The airship was moored to a large farm trailer from the nearby Blumenrod farm, but the strong winds managed to break ''Z II'' loose from her moorings, after which she drifted aimlessly without crew. The airship ultimately crashed into a hill named ''Webersberg'' near

Weilburg Weilburg is, with just under 13,000 inhabitants, the third biggest town in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany, after Limburg an der Lahn and Bad Camberg. Geography Location The community lies in the Lahn valley between the Wester ...

, Germany. The crash had broken the airship in two and was deemed a

total loss In insurance claims, a total loss or write-off is a situation where the lost value, repair cost or salvage cost of a damaged property exceeds its insured value, and simply replacing the old property with a new equivalent is more cost-effect ...

. ''Z II'' was scrapped on site and 22 commemorative medals were minted from aluminium debris that was salvaged during the scrapping of the airship.

Construction

Career

Loss

Specifications

References

Further reading