''LZ 74'' (navy designation ''L 32'') was an R Class super-

zeppelin A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin () who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874Eckener 1938, pp ...

belonging to the

Imperial German Navy The Imperial German Navy or the Imperial Navy () was the navy of the German Empire, which existed between 1871 and 1919. It grew out of the small Prussian Navy (from 1867 the North German Federal Navy), which was mainly for coast defence. Wilhel ...

Missions

The airship took part in three attacks on England dropping of bombs. L32 Green Farm Lane Memorial Great Burstead

Destroyed

On its final mission ''LZ 74'' was commanded by Kapitan-Leutnant Werner Petersen. The Airship set out with ''LZ 72'', ''LZ 76'' and ''LZ 78'' part of Zeppelin raid on the night of 23 September 1916. Second Lieutenant Frederick Sowrey, of 39 Home Defence Squadron, in a

Royal Aircraft Factory BE.2 The Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2 was a British single-engine tractor two-seat biplane designed and developed at the Royal Aircraft Factory. Most of the roughly 3,500 built were constructed under contract by private companies, including establish ...

C, launched from Sutton Farm at 23:30 hours to patrol toward Joyce Green. Flying at , he spotted Zeppelin ''LZ 74'' at about 0110 hours. He was able to close in with the Zeppelin until he was close enough to fire three drums of incendiary ammunition into its belly. Round after round hit the Airship before it finally exploded in flame. There were no survivors from the aircrew; most of the bodies recovered were charred and burned. The burning wreckage of ''L 32'' fell into farm fields off Green Farm Lane in

Great Burstead Great Burstead is an urban settlement in Essex, England - it is contiguous with the town of Billericay. History By tradition, the origins of the church, St Mary Magdalene, at Great Burstead are linked to Saint Cedd (d.664). Cedd, a missionary m ...

, crashing at 01.30. The site drew enormous crowds. The crew's bodies 22 in total were buried at Great Burstead Church under 1 mile from the crash site, being buried on the 27th of September 1916, then exhumed in 1966 and reburied at the German Military Cemetery Cannock Chase.

Specifications (''LZ 74'' / Type R zeppelin)

References

* {{LZ Navbox Zeppelins Airships of the Imperial German Navy 1916 in military history Military airships of World War I Individual aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1916 Disasters in Essex Aviation accidents and incidents in England

Missions

Destroyed

Specifications (''LZ 74'' / Type R zeppelin)

See also

References