Zeppelin LZ 52

LZ 52 (L 18)
General information
Type	Zeppelin P Class
Manufacturer	Luftschiffbau Zeppelin
History
Introduction date	6 November 1915 [1]

LZ 52 was a German airship built by Luftschiffbau Zeppelin for the German Imperial German Navy and made its first flight on 3 April 1915. It was the 52nd Zeppelin constructed and the 18th operated by the Imperial German Navy under the tactical designation L 18. It belonged to the German P-class series of military airships. L 18 had the shortest service life of any Navy Zeppelin. ^[2]

History

The airship was built at the Löwental Zeppelin facility, along with five other P-class Zeppelins. ^[3] It made its first flight on 3 November 1915 and was commissioned three days later. ^[2] It was commanded by naval reserve Captain Lieutenant Max Dietrich  [ de ]. During its short operational life, L 18 completed only four flights. ^[4] One of these was a transfer flight from Löwental on Lake Constance to Tønder, covering over 1,000 kilometers. Due to poor weather conditions, a stopover was made on 4 November 1915 at an army airship hangar in Hanover. The journey to Tønder continued on 16 November 1915. ^[2]

Fate

On 17 November 1915, while refilling its hydrogen gas at the "Toska" hangar in the Tønder airship base, a leaking pipe caused a fire to break out. The fire spread to L 18, which was completely destroyed. ^{[4] [5]} One crew member and six workers were killed in the accident, ^[6] and seven others were injured. L 18 was the first of five Zeppelins to be destroyed by fire in the "Toska" twin hangar. ^[2]

Specifications

• Lifting gas volume: 31,900 m³ hydrogen
• Length: 163.5 m
• Diameter: 18.7 m
• Payload: 15.4 tonnes
• Engines: Four six-cylinder Maybach HSLu engines, each 240 PS (177 kW)
• Maximum speed: 26.7 m/s
• Range: 2,150 km
• Service ceiling: 3,900 m
• Armament: At least 3 × 8 mm Maxim machine guns ^[5]
• Crew: 19 men ^[3]

References

1. D. H. Robinson: Deutsche Marine-Luftschiffe 1912–1918. Mittler, Hamburg/Berlin/Bonn 2005, p. 400.
2. D. H. Robinson: Deutsche Marine-Luftschiffe 1912–1918. Mittler, Hamburg/Berlin/Bonn 2005, p. 139.
3. M. Griehl: Deutsche Luftschiffe seit 1871. Motorbuch, Stuttgart 2010, p. 78.
4. P. Meyer: Luftschiffe – Die Geschichte der deutschen Zeppeline. Bernard & Graefe, Bonn 1996, p. 60.
5. M. Griehl: Deutsche Luftschiffe seit 1871. Motorbuch, Stuttgart 2010, p. 79.
6. "Accident Zeppelin LZ.52 L.18". Aviation Safety Network . 20 November 2020. Retrieved 16 February 2024.

Further reading

• Manfred Griehl: Deutsche Luftschiffe seit 1871. Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 2010, ISBN 978-3-613-03226-2, pp. 78–79.
• Peter Meyer: Luftschiffe – Die Geschichte der deutschen Zeppeline. Bernard & Graefe,*