Help!: Zeppelins, Dirigibles, Airships, etc.

[BJonas]

Can anyone recommend any good sites with info and pictures regarding airships, etc? I'm looking for something good and off the beaten path, something I may have overlooked while Google-ing and Wiki-ing the topic. If anyone can help, it would be greatly appreciated.

 

[drafttek]

Here's some footage of the Hindenburg I haven't seen before.
http://www.alexisparkinn.com/photogallery/Videos/Hindenburg%20Crash.wmv

 

[BJonas]

Here's some footage of the Hindenburg I haven't seen before.
http://www.alexisparkinn.com/photogallery/Videos/Hindenburg%20Crash.wmv

Cool. Thank you much.

Anybody else?

 

[Story]

My personal favorite

Akron and Macon, with parasite biplane fighters?

http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/ac-usn22/z-types/zrs4.htm

http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/ac-usn22/z-types/zrs5.htm

http://www.nlhs.com/ourltahist.htm

 

[BJonas]

One of my main research questions:

Thanks a lot. Those are cool :eusa_clap

By the way, does anyone know if dirigibles could fly in stormy skies? Was it a common practice during the age of the airship? I've found one piece of info that said that they were calm and not affected by high winds and storms, and then I read about the theory of the Hindenberg flying through a storm and catching static electricity, possibly leading to it's well known demise. [huh]

This storm stuff is a major stumbling block of the Zeppelin research I'm trying to do. If anyone can help I would very much appreciate it.

 

[Serial Hero]

I think high winds are bad for airships.

The Empire State Building was originally supposed to have an airship mooring on the top, but the high winds made it too dangerous, so it was turned into an observation deck.

 

[Absinthe_1900]

I think high winds are bad for airships.

Just ask the Shenandoah, Akron, & Macon Dirigibles.



An interesting Dirigible to read up on:

Google the ZMC-2, the only metal clad Dirigible to fly.

 

[BJonas]

I think high winds are bad for airships.

The Empire State Building was originally supposed to have an airship mooring on the top, but the high winds made it too dangerous, so it was turned into an observation deck.

I knew about that business with the mooring mast. I always thought that was kinda sad, like a symbol of the dream of airship-travel that helped cement it as just that- a dream. ('Scuse me, just feeling winsome and melancholy.)

But, at least it happened in "Sky Captain", right

 

[Serial Hero]

Here's a book you might want to check out:

Zeppelins: German Airships 1900–40
(New Vanguard 101)
http://www.ospreypublishing.com/title_detail.php/title=S6925

 

[CharlieH.]

I think high winds are bad for airships.

Just ask the Shenandoah, Akron, & Macon Dirigibles.

Don't forget the Los Angeles (Formerly ZR-3)!
While it was attached to a mooring mast at Lakehust, a gust of wind caught its tail and gave it a full 180 degree turn - vertically! Fortunately, it only suffered a few rips.

And just for fun - colour pics of the Hindenburg!

 

[BJonas]

Never seen color pics of the Hindenburg. Very cool :eusa_clap

 

[ltedge]

Airships

BJonas,

I went up to Lakehurst, NJ last year for training and learned a lot about the US Navy airships. There's a fantastic little museum in the old airship hangar that has lots of artifacts, photos, uniforms etc from the airship squadrons. There's also a memorial to the Hindenburg where the original mooring mast was. I actually met an old gentleman who served in several airship squadrons and was in fact one of the line handlers for the Hindenburg when it went down. He had some great stories.

Anyway, there is actually a Lakehurst Historical Society that serves to preserve the history of the airships. They have a website, http://www.nlhs.com/ that has some contact info. You may actually be able to talk/email with some of the people saw them in action. Hope this helps.

 

[CharlieH.]

Never seen color pics of the Hindenburg. Very cool :eusa_clap

You know, I just found out something interesting about the exterior shot.... it's a painting! Had me fooled completely.

 

[Absinthe_1900]

Here are a couple of unbuilt Pre-W.W. II "stick & tissue" model kits of the Los Angeles, & ZMC-2 Zepp's, from my collection of ancient model kits.

These were made by C.& S. Models of Trenton N.J.

 

[CharlieH.]

Those are swell! Have you ever felt tempted to assemble them?

 

[Absinthe_1900]

Not really, they've survived this long as they are.

If I really feel the need to do a model of these Zeppelins, I'd do them in plastic. it's a better medium.

Some years back Testors reissued the the old Hawk kit of the Graf Zeppelin. (Also as the Los Angeles) Now that Testors has sold all the old Hawk tooling to a group that is reviving Hawk, perhaps it may re-appear. http://www.hawkmodels.com/

AMT at one time did an Akron & Macon kit, as well as the Hindenburg back in the late 70's too.

Glencoe also has the old ITC tooling for the Navy Goodyear blimp, if you want to have a replica of other LTA craft.

 

[Story]

Sources for a whole fleet of airship models

http://spot.colorado.edu/~dziadeck/airship/models.htm

 

[Haversack]

The old Nut Tree roadside restaurant and air strip on old Highway 40 used to have a 1/72nd scale model of the USS Macon and all of its Sparrowhawkss hanging from the ceiling of their bookstore. Now that the Nut Tree is being resurrected, I wonder if the model and all the early aviation theme the old place has will be brought back.

Haversack.

 

[CharlieH.]

Speaking of airship models....

Here are a couple of pictures of my 1:700 scale R-100:

You can get this, plus the R101, a mooring mast and a hangar over here for free:

http://www.currell.net/models/mod_free.htm
(Some heavy assembly required!)

 

[Alan Eardley]

Zeppelins

The original Zeppelin factory at Freiderichshafen on der Bodensee (that's the huge lake visible in many pre-war photos of Zeppelins) is still producing airships. The Zeppelin museum there is well worth a visit and for around 300 Euros you can take a trip in the Graf Zeppelin 2 around the lake with great views of the towns unchanged since the 1930s. There are cheap flights from the UK.

Alan