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Aviation History
1922
1922 - 0220.PDF
IftSB From the example I have taken for the purpose of demon stration, of an aeroplane of 100 sq. m. wing area and 4,300 kilogs. total weight, you must not infer that I expect the improvements of aerodynamical qualities (with the conse quences I drew from it) to be realised by such small machines. I believe one can build very good aeroplanes of 4 to 5 tons total weight; but I think it would be much nearer to reality to talk of 500 sq. m. wing surface, 20 to 40 tons total weight and 1,500 to 4,000 h.p. Such large machines will, most probably, have very thick wings. By thick, I mean about 6 ft., and within these wings will be provided cabins, saloons and every comfort for passengers. It is worth noting that if a large increase of the size of an aeroplane does not improve materially its commercial efficiency, it has, nevertheless, the great advantage of allowing much more room for passen gers and freight, and that can be easily understood when one remembers that whilst the weight, the power, the capacity in cargo and the cost price of an aeroplane vary as the square of its lineal dimensions, the volume to be reserved for passen gers will vary as the cube of the same dimensions. In other words, if the weight, surface and power have been increased 100 times, then the cubic capacity will be 1,000 times larger. It is not exaggerated to talk of the days when the price of aerial transport will come down to 2 francs per ton and per kilometre, since an average life of two or three years— E H A WAR RECORD OF IN a summary of statistics of the Zeppelins and other airships employed by the German Navy during the war, published in the Marine Rundschau, the facts concerning these aircraft are available for the first time. Included, The Times Berlin correspondent states, is a complete list of naval airships, with the names of their commanders and watch officers, the date of their being put into service, the number of cruises and attacks made, their airport stations, and a brief account of their ultimate fate. From first to last the German Navy had at its disposal 78 airships. Six were either air training-ships or were used for special purposes, so that 72 took part in actual scouting and operations. The figures show that the average for each vessel was 16 cruises and three attacks. The maximum number in commission at any one time was 19. The highest number in commission in a single year was 39 in 1917, but the greatest number of cruises and attacks was made in 1916. In that year the 31 airships in commission at various times made 296 cruises and 107 attacks. But it was also the year of the greatest losses. Eight were destroyed by enemy action, four by storm, and four by explosion. In the following year nine were lost by enemy action, and five by storm. The total loss for the whole period of the war was 52, made up as follows— Destroyed by enemy action, 26 ; destroyed by storm, 14 ; destroyed by explosion, 12. Besides these, however, 17 others went out of service for various reasons. Full particulars are given about the various stations. The double shed at Fuhlsbuttel was burnt down on September 16, 1016. That at Tondern was burnt out three times and rebuilt. Of the four double sheds at Ahlhorn, three were blown up and totally destroyed in the great explosion which took place on January 5, 1918. Of the 52 airships lost, the crews of 19 were killed, the crews of six taken prisoners, and the crews of three were interned. In the case of the other 24 there was no loss of personnel. Nine airships were left in commission when the Armistice was declared, including the two school airships at Nordholz. One was in course of construction. Of the six Zeppelins put into commission in 1914, L.3 and L.4 were stranded during the storm of February 17, 1915 > L.5 was stranded at Dunamiinde, in Courland, on August 6, 1915, after being hit by enemy fire ; L.7 was shot down in flames by the enemy on May 4" 1916 ; L.6, the training-ship, exploded in its hangar on September 19, 1916 ; and L.8 was shot down in action of March 5, 1915, and stranded at Tirle- mont. Twelve were put into commission in 1915. L.18, commissioned on November 3, 1915, caught fire in the hangar at Tondern a fortnight later while being inflated. L.9 blew up in the hangar at Fuhlsbuttel on September 19, 1916, and L.io was struck by lightning above Neuwerk Island on September 3, 1915. Of the rest, L.12, L.15, and L.19 were shot down ; L.17 blew up in the explosion at Tondern ; L.20 was stranded at Stavanger, in Norway ; L.n, L.13 and L.16 were dismantled, and only L.14, the training-ship, survived to be handed over at the Armistice. . Of the 1916 ships, L.21, L.22, L.23 (at sea), L.31, L.32, L-33 (over London), L.34 (over Sunderland), and L.39 (over • APRIL 13, 1922 or say 2,000 hours of flight—for aeroplanes and engines would suffice to bring that result, even with petrol and oil at their present very high prices. It is practically certain that aeroplanes of the future will not burn petrol but rather heavy oils or other cheap fuels, the cost price of which should be about one-fifth that of petrol. Now, first-class passenger fares in France are calculated • on the basis of 21.15 francs per 100 km. Supposing that a passenger with his hand luggage weighs an average of 90 kilogs., we find that the ton-kilometre (passenger) runs to 2.35 francs. That shows that the future prices of aerial transports will be of the same order as the present first-class passenger fares in France. More striking still is the comparison with the fares on steamship lines, since a first class passenger nowadays pays about 6 francs per ton-kilometre, whilst state cabins are charged at the rate of 10 francs. In conclusion, aerial transports are expensive for the present, because they are not yet out of the experimental stage, and that the sinking funds, the upkeep and general expenses are very heavy ; but one can reasonably say, that within 10 years, these costs should be reduced in the propor tion of seven to one, and within 20 years in the proportion of fifteen to one. We must therefore work hard and steadily, with full confidence in the future of aviation. H S GERMANY'S AIRSHIPS Compiegne), were shot down. L.24 caught fire while entering the hangar at Tondern, and caused the explosion which de stroyed L.17. L.25 to L.29 were Army ships. L.30 and L.37 went out of commission in 1917, and were handed over to the Allies at the end of the war. L.36 and L.38 were stranded. The 1917 ships suffered bad losses both from explosions and in action. The great explosion at Ahlhorn on January 5, 1918, accounted for L.46, L.47, L.51 and L.58, besides the Schutte-Lanz, SL.20 ; L.57, which had been intended for the expedition to German East Africa, exploded in mid-air on her trial trip on October 7, 1917, 14 days after completion. The entire crew perished, and the cause of the disaster was never discovered. She was succeeded by L.59, which made the trip, but was recalled when over the Sudan because the Germans had then evacuated German East Africa. This vessel bombed Naples, and was engaged in an expedition to bomb Malta when she came down in flames in the Straits of Otranto for reasons unknown, as she was not then under attack. The following were destroyed in action :—L.43 (in the North Sea), L.44 (near Luneville), L.45 (over Sisteron), L.48 (after bombing the Suffolk area, brought down by the R.F.C.. with Commodore Schutte on board), L.49 (near Bourbonnes), L.50 (in France, afterwards sailed away without crew), L.53 (by a British airman while scouting), L.54 and L.60 (by a British airman while in the hangar at Tondern), and L.55 (over Tieffenort, in attack). L.40 was stranded at Nordholz aerodrome in foul weather. The others were either dismantled or were handed over at the Armistice. The Zeppelin war had been a continuous struggle on the part of the Germans to attain altitudes that could not be reached by the defence. In the summer of 1917 they had reached altitudes at which human beings could not live without oxygen (afterwards compressed air was used). The type L.53 to L.55, then in use, had a cubic capacity of 56,000 cubic metres and a maximum altitude of 18,000 to 20,000 ft. But in 1918 they found their attacks badly hampered by British aeroplanes and the " excellently organised artillery " in England, and they were at best able to attack only in cloudy weather. The L.70 was a new type, with seven motors and an altitude of 21,000 ft., whereby it was hoped to outstrip any defence. It set forth on August 6, 1918, with the Commodore, Captain Peter Straffer, on board, but the uncertain temperature of August night prevented it from attaining its maximum altitude, and it was shot down by British sea forces on August 10, 1918. On the following day the next in seniority, Captain Prolz, was brought down with L.53, and it was decided tem porarily to abandon attacks till the new type, with a cubic capacity of 62,000 cubic metres and an altitude of 22,000 ft., was ready. Fortunately the German Navy mutinied and the German front collapsed before this was ready. L.71 was handed over with the other eight to the Allies, and L.72, still unfinished, was ultimately completed and surrendered to France. Nine Schutte-Lanz, three Parsivals, and one other were commissioned. None of these, it is stated, proved satisfactory.
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