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Aviation History
1916
1916 - 0744.PDF
JUS!) " ARMAMENT.—The armament of these vessels has hardly changed. The bomb-room has remained in the middle of the gangway, but the crude way of dropping bombs by hand has been superseded by a scientific appliance, whereby the bombs arc released electrically. " In addition to the two machine guns mounted on each car, two more have been provided for arming the lookout post atop of the hull, which is connected with the bomb-room by means of a stairway encased in a chimney. " Thus far the apparent changes affecting super-Zep pelins. " Modifications relative to the ratio of dead weight to useful load are more or less a matter of speculation. On the ante bellum Zeppelins the useful load amounted to about one-fourth of the total lift. According to a statement emanating iron) Count Zeppelin's secretary, the climbing power of the new type is two-fifths better than on previous types, and the load of ammunition amounts to two ltons ; it might therefore be assumed that the useful load is also at least two-fifths better than heretofore, in which case i£s ratio would be 35 per cent, of the total lift. " Such an improvement is entirely within the present-day possibilities, if one bears in mind that the ratio of dead weight to useful load decreases with the Zep*pelin's size and that the super-Zeppelins displace about ten tons more than the vessels of the previous type. Some weight may also have been saved through an improved system of construction, as well as by the new 200 h.p. engines, which weigh only 880 lbs. instead <>i 985 lbs. " On the basis of the above ratio a 33-ton super-Zeppelin carries a useful load of about tij tons—more than double the load the previous type was capable of lifting. If such is the case, allowance for two tons of ammunition leaves oj tons available for crew, ballast and fuel. " THE CREW.—Of the two super-Zeppelins destroyed lately, the ' LZ yy ' carried 15 men, and the ' L 15,' whose crew was captured, 2 officers and 16 men. Supposing the latter figure represents the war complement of the largest super-Zeppelin, it remains to be computed how these 18 men are detailed for navigating and fighting. " The three-engined passenger Zeppelins required a navi gating personnel of 9 men, distributed as follows :—The commander, 2 helmsmen and 2 mechanics in the front car (housing 1 engine) ; and a chief engineer and 3 mechanics in the rear car (housing 2 engines). " Although a super-Zeppelin mounts a third engine astern, it might be assumed that the engine crew has not been increased, 5 mechanics and I engineer being quite sufficient AUG0;T 31, 1916. for looking after 4 engines. But in view of the super-Zeppelin's long cruising radius a third helmsman might have been added to the crew ; this would leave 8 men, including the lieutenant, for manning the bomb tube and the machine guns. Six men are required for manning the latter; the remaining two would then constitute the bomb-crew with the lieutenant as gunnery officer, and possibly, second in charge of navi gation. " A complement of 18 officers and men represents a load of about one and one-half tons ; there would then remain 8 tons for ballast and fuel. " THE BALLAST.—There are very good reasons for believing that the water-ballast has been considerably increased on the 33-ton airships. Vessels of the previous (23-ton) type, which carried ij tons of ballast, used to navigate at an altitude of 5,000 ft., and hardly ever reached the 9,000 ft. mark, ex cepting during trials ; super-Zeppelins, however, often reach an altitude of 10,000 ft., and are currently seen navigating at 7,000 ft. " Whereas the buoyancy of a Zeppelin is just sufficient to keep the vessel floating at a low level, great heights can be reached only through a combination of dynamic lift (expendi ture of engine power) and of static lift, the latter being attained both through jettisoning ballast and burning fuel, and in extreme cases, by a forced dropping of bombs. " The question of ballast is one closely allied with that of compensating losses of buoyancy at great heights. Lack of space unfortunately forbids a detailed discussion of this subject; suffice it to say, that losses of buoyancy cannot be made up entirely by jettisoning ballast and one might assume that some artifice, possibly a system of compensating balloonets for each of the 20 or more gasbags, has been devised for remedy ing this defect on super-Zeppelins. " Such a course should not be astonishing at all in view of the several airships the Germany Navy lost in the North Sea, for the sole reason that when they came down from a great height, the gas, after having expantfed, contracted through the greater atmospheric pressure and proved insuffi cient for insuring the necessary buoyancy. It was this phenomenon which caused the loss of ' L 3 ' and ' L4,' not to speak of others. " Anyhow, one can safely assume that the ballast of a 33-ton vessel is at least double that of the ante-bellum Zeppelin, say three tons, but more probably four tons, leaving four tons available for the fuel. " CRUISING RADIUS.-—As the fuel consumption of the four- engine unit amounts to about 450 lbs. per hour, four tons of No. Name. Table showing Probable Zeppelin Losses from August 1st, 1914, to May 3rd, 1916. Tlace. Date. Cause of Loss. I 2 3 4 I 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 IS 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 Z8 zs ? r LZ31 •?* L3 L9 L8 ?* ? LZ37 L2 38 L? ? ? ?• V* L18 Z28* L 22 ? • L 19 LZ 77 LiS L 20 Badonvillers, France Mlava, Russia Seradz, Russia Diisseldoif, Germany Friedrichshafen, Germany , North Sea Ebsjerg, Denmark ... Boulogne, France ... Tirlemont, Belgium... Thielt, Belgium North Sea Evere, Belgium Ghent, Belgium Ostend, Belgium Vilna, Russia Saint-Hubert, Belgium Maubeuge, Ffance ... Grodno, Russia ._ Tomlern, Germany .. Hamburg, Germany Tondern, Germany... Kalkun, Russia Mainvault, Belgium North Sea Revigny, France Kentish Knock, England Stavanger, Norway ... 22.8.1914 29.8.1914 6.9.1914 9.10.1914 21.11.1914 23.1.1915 17-2.1915 5-3-I9I5 4-3-I9I5 12.4. i 9r5 26.5.1915 i 7-6-I9I5 I 7-6.1915 10.8.1915 24.8.1915 13.10.1915 16.10.1915 5.11.1915 17.11.1915 17.11.1915 1.12.1915 5.12.1915 30.1.1916 21.2.1916 21.2.1916 1.4.1010 3.5.1916 Destroyed by French gunners. Part of crew lost. Destroyed by Russian gunners. Crew lost. Captured, while at anchor, by a cavalry patrol, Crew of 30, prisoners. Destroyed in shed by British aviators. Destroyed in shed by British aviators. Foundered during a storm. Stranded, having run out of fuel, and broke up. Crew of 16 interned. Foundered during a storm, after having raided Calais. Crew lost. Damaged by British aviator ; wrecked on landing. 21 of crew killed. Damaged, over Bethune, by French gunners ; wrecked on landing. Broke away without crew ; foundered off Heligoland. Destroyed in shed by British aviators. Destroyed in mid-air by British aviator. Crew lost. Raided London. Destroyed, upon her return, by British aviators. Shot down by Russian gunners. Crew of 10 made prisoners. Destroyed by exploding in mid-air. Stranded on a chimney and broke up. Destroyed by the storm on landing. Wrecked in shed through an accidental (?) explosion. Wrecked by the storm. Destroyed in shed through accidental explosion of a bomb. Shot down by Russian gunners. Crew lost. Raided Paris. Damaged by French aviator ; wrecked on landing. Raided England. Probably run out of fuel ; foundered. Crew lost. Shot down by French motor guns; destroyed in fall. Crew of 15 killed. Shot down by British gunners. Crew of 18 surrendered. Vessel sank. Raided Scotland. Stranded, having run out of fuel and drifted with the wind. Blown up by crew; 3 killed, 16 interned. * Destruction not authenticated. 740
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