Inspired by a balloon ride in America, Count Graf von Zeppelin began to study and think about how to build, control and fly a lighter than air ship. When he turned his full-time attention to the issue in 1890, it was generally accepted that balloons should be cigar shaped, with many smaller cells comprising the total. Hydrogen was the best inflator and steering required a powerful propellant. The count befriended a local manufacturer of internal combustion engines, Gottlieb Daimler. Four hundred and twenty feet long and powered by a 14.5hp Daimler engine, the LZ-1 flew 3.5 miles in July, 1900. LZ-2 required a stiffer airframe, a better engine and better controls. The state provided financial assistance. But, the LZ-2 crashed in early 1906. Later that year, it flew for two hours and once again piqued the interest of the army. A twelve hour flight in the LZ-4 in 1908 cemented Zeppelin's relationship with the government and made him a worldwide phenomena. Meanwhile, the powered flights of the Wright brothers were drawing the approval of the American military. The count was committed to his airship as a weapon, while others encouraged its commercial use as a passenger carrier. Starting in 1911, the Zeppelins began commercial passenger service in Germany. Prior to the outbreak of war, the airships flew over 34,000 passengers on 1588 flights covering 107,205 miles.
The initial army and navy efforts with converted airships were unmitigated failures. After a few years, the Reich built bigger and better airships which were able to fly to, and bomb, London. Anti-aircraft weapons and airplanes soon put an end to the Zeppelin's effectiveness. "The great majority of Zeppelin raids were a complete waste of time, money and life." The acceleration of construction of airships, the use of new materials and the breadth of missions flown positioned Zeppelins for success in the post-war era.
During the war, a Zeppelin had made a non-stop 4000+ mile trip and the successors to the Count, who had died during the war, believed in the future of long distance passenger travel. And they and most students of flight agreed that airplanes were not equipped to compete with the airships from Germany. Hugo Eckener, the executive now in charge of Zeppelins, was prohibited by the Versailles Treaty from building a ship larger than one million cubic feet. In essence, he was limited to building small ships for local travel. His goal was to cross the Atlantic. In 1922, he made a deal to build the US Navy a 2.5 million cf ship. In October, 1924, he sailed it across the Atlantic and safely delivered it to the Navy in NJ. As Eckener dreamed of building a trans-oceanic business, aggressive American businessmen were also thinking about visionary air passenger options featuring gas-powered airplanes. Freed by the Treaty of Locarno in 1926, Eckener built the Graf Zeppelin and in 1928, the luxury airship crossed the Atlantic in 111 hours to worldwide acclaim. The return was a much quicker 71 hours. But, safety and practicality remained concerns in the eyes of many. To prove its durability and air worthiness, Eckener embarked on a round the world flight in the fall of 1929. He headed east over the USSR and landed in Japan in four days. Over the Pacific and on to the East Coast, where he was honored with only the 11th Gold Medal given by the National Geographic Society. He partnered with an American business and the following year, flew from Germany to Brazil to the US and back across the ocean. An international success was looming.
Eyeing the Germans but convinced airplanes were the future, Juan Trippe, founder of Pan American Airways worked continually to establish a passenger airline on the back of his airmail business. He initiated passenger service in the Caribbean on a seaplane, Sikorsky's S-40, the American Clipper piloted by Charles Lindbergh. Eckener was struggling to keep the Zeppelin company going under the new Nazi regime, which considered both Eckener and the airship relics of a bygone era. He was successfully managing regular Europe to Brazil runs, but still desired to conquer the Atlantic with a regular passenger service. With the support of the regime, Eckener began construction of the behemoth Hindenburg. In early 1936, the luxurious Zeppelin was ready. The Nazis the airship, took over control of the company and sidelined Eckener. Meanwhile, Trippe had pivoted to the Pacific and was building stops for his clippers on Midway and Wake islands. His China Clipper flew from San Francisco to Manilla late in 1935. Trans-Pacific passenger service was now a reality.
On May 6, 1936, with fifty-one passengers aboard, the Hindenburg left for NY. The three day flight and its shorter return were a resounding success. It then undertook regular flights to Brazil, one of which carried a curious Juan Trippe and his wife. The following year, the Hindenburg was scheduled to land in Lakehurst, NJ on May 6th. The airship was late, the weather was not perfect and the ship came in a bit fast, causing a wire brace to snap. At 7:25 P.M., the ship burst into flames. "In roughly half a minute, a succession of wildly remote possibilities, none inherently dangerous in and of itself, turned into lethal certainty." Thirty-five of the ninety-seven travelers died. Although there was another airship built in Germany, it was only used domestically, mostly for propaganda purposes. As for Pan Am, the Pacific service was unprofitable and the Atlantic service began in May, 1939 and was suspended when war broke out. Eckener survived the war and lived long enough to see the advent of the jet airplane. Trippe eventually conquered the airways making Pan Am the pride and joy of the US, the master of international flight. He built the skyscraper Pan Am building over Grand Central, retired in 1964 and died in 1981.
This is a magnificent and wonderful book, a bit long at almost 500 pages, but well worth the effort.
No comments:
Post a Comment