LZ 112 was the first of three Zeppelins of the x-class built for the Imperial German Navy. The third and last of the x-class, Dixmude made its first flight on 9 July 1920 and was surrendered to the French authorities four days later.[1]
Final bombing raid
Peter StrasserAirco DH.4 like this shot down LZ 112
On 28 November 1916 a new commander of the Zeppelin force was appointed by imperial decree Peter Strasser "Leader of Airships" (Führer der Luftschiffe; F.d.L.). He was instrumental in the development of long-range bombing and the development of the rigid airship as an efficient, high altitude, all-weather aircraft. He was a major proponent of the doctrine of bombing attacks on civilian as well as military targets, to serve both as propaganda and as a means of diverting resources from the front line.
We who strike the enemy where his heart beats have been slandered as 'baby killers' ... Nowadays, there is no such animal as a noncombatant. Modern warfare is total warfare.
As such late in the war Strasser planned a five Zeppelin raid on the United Kingdom. The raid would be dynamic with the exact target changing depending on the weather. His orders were to attack south or middle England hoping to even reach London. On the afternoon of 5 August 1918, LZ 112 took off from Friedrichshafen with four other airships. They headed for the east coast of England, timing their flight to arrive off the coast just after dark. The commander of LZ 112 was FregattenkapitänPeter Strasser, the Führer der Luftschiffe ("Leader of Airships", the commander of all Naval airships). However, the airship squadron was spotted out at sea by the Leman Tail lightship, which signalled their course and position to the Admiralty. [3]
British RAF Major Egbert Cadbury was attending a charity concert at which his wife was performing when an RAF orderly found him. Cadbury drove back to the airfield, where he was informed that three Zeppelins had been reported about 50 miles (80km) to the north-east, and knowing there was only one aircraft available, an Airco DH.4, he grabbed his flying kit and ran for it, beating a rival pilot to the cockpit by a split-second. With Captain Robert Leckie in the rear gunner's seat, Cadbury climbed up to over 16,000 feet (4,900m) by jettisoning his reserve fuel and some small bombs, where he saw three Zeppelins ahead and above him. He later recounted:[4]
At 22.20 we had climbed to 16,400 feet and I attacked the Zeppelin ahead slightly to the port so as to clear any obstruction that might be suspended from the airship. It was a most fascinating sight – awe inspiring – to see this enormous Zeppelin blotting the whole sky above one. The tracers ignited the escaping gas, the flames spreading rapidly and turning the airship into a fireball in less than a minute. The LZ 112 dived headlong into the clouds. It was one of the most terrifying sights I have ever seen to see this huge machine hurtling down with all those crew on board.[4]
Cadbury and Leckie, and another pilot Lieutenant Ralph Edmund Keys, then attacked and damaged another Zeppelin, which promptly turned tail and headed for home.[4] All three received the Distinguished Flying Cross.[5]
These airmen, Cadbury & Leckie, had already shot down two Zeppelins: prior to LZ 112, Cadbury had downed L 21 and Leckie, L 22. [6]
Specifications
Data from Zeppelin: rigid airships, 1893-1940,[7][1]
1Early Army designations, used pre-war. 2Wartime Army LZ designations were not always matched to Zeppelin's LZ hull number.
Related Research Articles
A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Ferdinand von Zeppelin who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874 and developed in detail in 1893. They were patented in Germany in 1895 and in the United States in 1899. After the outstanding success of the Zeppelin design, the word zeppelin came to be commonly used to refer to all rigid airships. Zeppelins were first flown commercially in 1910 by Deutsche Luftschiffahrts-AG (DELAG), the world's first airline in revenue service. By mid-1914, DELAG had carried over 10,000 fare-paying passengers on over 1,500 flights. During World War I, the German military made extensive use of Zeppelins as bombers and as scouts, resulting in over 500 deaths in bombing raids in Britain.
Peter Strasser was chief commander of German Imperial Navy Zeppelins during World War I, the main force operating bombing campaigns from 1915 to 1917. He was killed when flying the German Empire's last airship raid over the United Kingdom.
Major Sir Egbert "Bertie" Cadbury was a British businessman, a member of the Cadbury family, who as a First World War pilot shot down two Zeppelins over the North Sea: L.21 on 28 November 1916, and L.70 on 6 August 1918: the latter while flying a De Havilland DH.4 with Robert Leckie as observer/gunner.
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