The Hindenburg is the famous airship that met a big disaster that occurred on May 6, 1937, in Manchester Township, New Jersey, United States. The German traveler carrier L-Z 129 Hindenburg burst into flames and was wrecked during its endeavor to dock with its securing pole at Naval Air Station Lakehurst. Onboard were 97 people (36 passengers and 61 crewmen); there were 36 fatalities (13 passengers and 22 crewmen, 1 worker on the ground). Some crew members and passengers jumped over several feet to safety while others burned. Of 97 people aboard, 62 survived. Surprisingly, more than half of the people on board actually survived the crash. In this article, I want to take you on a detailed tour of the inside of the Hindenburg.
A Construction Of The Hindenburg
The earliest airship that we know of was in the year 1783 in France. These primitive balloons were unstable, and steering was near impossible at first. A man by the name of Count Zeppelin created his own company and helped perfect the design of airships. At the time, passenger air travel was not commonplace yet, so this was the fastest way to travel across the ocean. It was about twice as fast as an ocean liner. Construction of the Hindenburg was completed in 1936. To this day, it’s still the largest flying object ever to be built.
It was built in Germany and funded by the Nazis, which is why the swastika is on the tail. Most of the space inside the ship is taken up by 16 large gas cells. If we remove these, you can see the frame of the ship. The passenger areas are down here. There are two decks. The top one is the A deck, and then below is the B deck. The B deck is where the passengers board the airship. There are angled windows to get a panoramic view of the scene below, bathrooms, areas for the crew, the kitchen, and the officers’ mess. Also a very special smoking room.
It was pressurized so that there was no chance of any hydrogen leaking in. Because hydrogen is the most flammable fuel. The stair here takes us up to the A deck, which is where the passengers spent most of their time. There are more windows on both sides of the ship. Here are the reading and writing room, and the lounge area, complete with a very lightweight grand piano. This piano is made out of aluminum. And it’s weight about 356 pounds (162kg). The passenger cabins have two bunks each, and the dining room was on the other side. Ont the B deck, that hallway is called the keel corridor, which led to a walkway through the entire bottom of the ship.
Towards the front of the ship are the mailroom and the radio room. Right below there is the control car. And also the command center of the ship, which you can see below. the rudder wheel, which helps move the ship to the left or right by controlling the rudders on the very back of the ship. There is the elevator wheel, which controls the pitch of the ship. Ideally, controlling the ship as level as possible to keep the passengers comfortable. This is done by the elevators on the very back. The officers’ quarters are there so that they are close to the control car. Along the keel catwalk, There is plenty of these fuel and water tanks. Also, the crew quarters, cargo areas, and this is the electrical room.
Along the side of the ship are four engine cars with propellers to help move the ship forward. There was always a crew member stationed at each engine car at all times of the journey. This walkway is how the crew could get to the engine car. Along the keel corridor are several shafts with ladders so the crew members could climb up higher. These shafts were also used to ventilate gas. This walkway through the center of the ship is called the axial corridor. These 16 gas cells are what hold the ship up in the air. The cells were originally intended to be filled with helium but instead were filled with hydrogen. If we look at the periodic table of elements, hydrogen is the lightest element, which means it will provide the most lift.
Unfortunately, it’s also very flammable, so the intent with the Hindenburg was to use helium, slightly heavier, but also much safer. At the time, the United States had the best supply of helium but the American ban on exporting helium to the other countries, which means that Germany was out of luck. So the Hindenburg had no other choice so they use hydrogen.
Some Previous Airship Accidents
Previous to the Hindenburg, there had been quite a few airship accidents. Other countries had already decided that hydrogen-filled airships were just too dangerous. Germany, however, had a flawless record so far. No passengers had ever been killed in an airship accident.
Zeppelin L-Z 104
Zeppelin L-Z 104 also know as Das Afrika-Schiff (“The Africa Ship”), was a World War I German airship, popular for endeavoring a long-separation resupply strategic the ambushed battalion of Germany’s East Africa state. L-Z 104 accident in 1917 where 21 peoples are dead.
Wingfoot Air Express
The Wingfoot Air Express was an airship that collided with the Illinois Trust and Savings Building in Chicago on Monday, July 21, 1919. The Type FD dirigible, claimed by the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, was moving individuals from Grant Park to the White City amusement park. In this accident, 13 people are dead.
R-38 Class Airship
The R-38 class airship also known as the A-class of harsh airships was designed for Britain’s Royal Navy during the last months of World War I, proposed for long-range patrol duties over the North Sea. In this accident, 44 people are dead in 1921.
Dixmuda
The Dixmude was a Zeppelin aircraft worked for the Imperial German Navy as L 72 and incomplete toward the finish of World War I, It was lost when it detonated in mid-air on 21 December 1923 off the coast of Sicily, all 52 people dead on board.
The Hindenburg Disaster
During the year 1936, the Hindenburg had many successful passenger flights, to the United States and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The year 1937 didn’t go so well. May 3rd, the Hindenburg begins its journey from Frankfurt, Germany. It was a three-day journey to get to Lakehurst, New Jersey. The ship was only half full at this time. Only 97 people were on board. The landing was originally scheduled for the early morning of May 6th, but it was delayed because of strong headwinds, rain, and thunderstorms.
In the Lakehurst station. There has a hangar to park the airship when it’s not flying. There is also the mooring mast. For a normal landing, the nose of the ship will be attached to the mooring mast while it’s on the ground. On the evening of May 6th, there were many people on the ground, including spectators, news reporters, and crew members ready to help bring the ship in.
Landing Timing
Around 7:00 p.m. local time, at a height of 650 feet (200 m), the Hindenburg made its last approach to the Lakehurst Naval Air Station.
At 7:00 p.m., the ship made the first pass over the landing site and slowly circled for the final landing. At this point, the ship was 12 hours late, so there was an urgency to land, as many passengers were waiting to board for the return trip back to Germany. For some reason, the tail of the ship was low, a possible hydrogen leak.
Disaster
At 7:21 p.m., the ship released the handling lines for the ground crew below. Four minutes later, the ship bursts into flames at the top, in between gas cells numbers four and five have a big explosion. It took less than a minute for the ship to be destroyed and in ruins on the ground below. Of the 97 people on board, 62 of them survived the crash.
Right after it happens, the tail begins to fall. The flames travel through the axial corridor and out the nose of the ship. Everyone on board is thrown off their feet with a sudden jolt. Since they’re about to land, most passengers are already at the windows, and it’s a good thing, too. As the ship gets closer to the ground, many were able to jump and run away from the burning ship. Others were not so lucky.
Cause Of The Hindenburg Disaster
No one knows for sure what caused the ship to catch on fire. Unfortunately, most of the evidence was burned up. The likely cause is from static electricity buildup right before the disaster. One small spark is all it would take. The Hindenburg wasn’t the worst airship disaster. It was just the first to be caught on film and widely seen by the public. Because of this, airship travel as a means of transportation was brought to an end. Any airships that are still in use today will use helium and not hydrogen.
News coverage
The Hindenburg disaster was well-documented by the media because of the combination of many news crews have been on landing site at the time of the airship exploding and the significant extent of newsreel coverage and photographs are present there, also Herbert Morrison’s observer radio report for station WLS in Chicago, which was communicated the following day. Many today remember the famous commentary by Herbert Morrison who shouts, “Oh the Humanity!”
Hitler Reaction On The Hindenburg Disaster
After the explosion of the Hindenburg Hitler make a public statement and immediately banned airships filled with highly flammable hydrogen. Although German airship manufacturing company Zeppelins had been very safe and doing well up until the Hindenburg Disaster. The catastrophe signaled the finish of passenger travel by dirigible. Consistent enhancements in planes had just eliminated dirigible travel and aircraft like the Hindenburg would before long become the only commentary in flying history.