Title
The Hindenburg Disaster
Author
Jill Sherman
Year
2010
Length
9 chapters; text runs pp. 6-94, so 88 pages; with 8 of those being full-page
illustrations, plus many half-page illustrations
Ebook available?
yes (we don’t own it, but could purchase an unlimited simultaneous ebook)
Audiobook available?
no
Executive Summary
On May 6, 1937, the German airship Hindenburg caught fire just before landing
in Lakehurst, New Jersey and crashed, killing 35 people on the airship and one
person on the ground, but leaving a number of survivors.
Features
timeline, essential facts, highlights of event, bibliographies, glossary, index
Illustrations
many period photographs
Key Structures
Sequence of events, cause and effect, problem/solution
Key Themes
role of media coverage of disasters (particularly the radio commentary and
newsreel footage), the science behind airships and the explosion, how certain
technologies (airships) get eclipsed by other technologies (airplanes), the
effects of hindsight (“those stupid people, flying around attached to a bag full of
explosive gas, of course it was going to blow up!”)
Vocabulary
There is a lot of unexplained airship jargon in parts of the book. As is typical
with this series, the glossary is rather dubious in terms what words are defined.
Chapter 1
– Oh! The
Humanity! (pp.
6-14 – 9 pages,
with two large
illustrations
and one of the
pages with only
a sentence or
two)
Summary:
● Suspensefully describes the events of May 6, 1937, from arrival at the Lakehurst
(New Jersey) Naval Air Station of the German airship Hindenburg to its sudden
explosion and crash to the earth, a tragedy that killed 36 people and signaled the
end of the era of airships. Author notes that many questions about the cause of
the tragedy had yet to be answered.
Vocabulary:
● hangar
● dirigible
● airship
● zeppelin
● hydrogen
● helium
● mooring mast
● landing lines
● unscathed
● promenade
● ballast
Illustrations:
● Photo: Herbert Morrison, radio reporter who reported live on the disaster
● Photo: Hindenburg on fire and crashing to earth
● Photo: the smoking wreckage of the Hindenburg
Sidebars:
● Airships: a little background on airships/dirigibles, zeppelins, and blimps
● Hydrogen: a little background on the flammable, lighter-than-air gas used to lift
airships
● Herbert Morrison’s Broadcast: some details about the report (it was not
broadcast live but recorded and played back later) and some reactions to
Morrison’s emotional broadcast
● Crew Members Escape: some details about why some crew were able to escape
and others were not
● Hindenburg facts: about size, weight, capacity, and speed of the craft
Questions:
● Why was there a crowd waiting for the arrival of the Hindenburg on May 6,
1937?
● Why was the public fascinated with airships at the time?
● Why couldn’t the Hindenburg land at its scheduled time? What did the captain
do to pass the time?
● How many ground crew, Hindenburg crew, and passengers were there on May
6, 1937?
● Using the information in the sidebar on page 13, compare the raw data on the
Hindenburg with things people today would be familiar with. For example, use
football fields to compare the length and width; use the average weight of a
modern car to compare weight and carrying capacity; etc.
● What was reporter Herbert Morrison’s reaction to witnessing the sudden
explosion and crash of the Hindenburg as landing was attempted?
● Describe the reaction of witness George Willens.
● Describe how the explosion and crash felt from inside the airship, according to
witnesses, and their various methods of escaping the disaster?
● How many people died and how many survived the crash of the Hindenburg?
● What major questions remained right after the disaster?
● What is the difference between a balloon, an airship, a dirigible, a zeppelin,
and a blimp? Are some of the terms interchangeable? Is one of these a type of
another of these? Make sure you can describe each term accurately and how
they related.
● What were some of the possible causes of the disaster, according to the
questions near the end of the chapter?
● You will the the names of several airships in this book. How are ship names
punctuated or treated visually in the text? What can you easily do with a pen/
paper that is the equivalent?
Interesting Topics:
● One of the most notable aspects of this disaster was that it was caught live the explosion and crash were photographed, the disaster was described by a
reporter who was there for a different purpose and was as surprised as anyone.
Did this on-the-scene material help convey the horror of the accident to the
general public, and was it key to bringing the era of the airship to an end?
● Author’s craft: how does the author build suspense at the end of the chapter?
Further Research:
● Recording of the coverage of the crash - I think we have a book with a CD that
includes the radio report by Herbert Morrison. The kids will definitely want to
hear that.
● Airship/dirigible principles - scientific, engineering - how it works http://
www.airships.net/
● History of flight - how did ballooning lead to dirigibles, how long had dirigibles
been around, and where was airplane technology at the time?
● History of airship/dirigible accidents - was this the first (or even the worst) crash?
Why did this one bring about the end of the age of airships?
Chapter 2 –
Lighter Than
Air (pp. 1624 – 9 pages
with 2 large
illustrations)
Summary:
● Seeking to improve on ballooning technology that had existed for some time,
retired German military officer Count Zeppelin spent years designing and
building prototype rigid airships that eventually caught the attention of donors
and investors. He established companies to produce airships both for German
military use and for transporting passengers safely in the years just before the
start of World War I.
Vocabulary:
● atmospheric pressure
● eccentric
● deutsche marks
Illustrations:
● Photo: Count Zeppelin
● Photo: Zeppelin LZ3 in the air above the trees
● Photo: Hugo Eckener
Sidebars:
● hot air balloon history
● first non-rigid airship
● background info on Count Zeppelin
● trivia about a prize given for a fast airship
● anecdote about how Count Zeppelin and Hugo Eckener began working together
Questions:
● Count Zeppelin was born 100 years before the events of the Hindenburg. Who
was he and why is his story tied to that of the Hindenburg?
● Hot air balloons had been around since the 1780s. What drawbacks did hot air
balloons have that needed to be overcome if lighter-than-air technology was to
become useful for transportation?
● What were some methods that were tried over the years by the French to
provide balloons with a way to steer and move in a desired direction?
● When did Germany start to get interested in airship technology? What chief uses
did Count Zeppelin envision for such craft?
● In what ways was a rigid design superior to a non-rigid design for a lighter-thanair craft? What relatively light but rigid material was used?
● Summarize the successes, improvements, and failures of Count Zeppelin’s first
four airships (LZ 1 to LZ 4).
● Despite the fate of LZ 4, what was Germany’s reaction to the advances in
airships that Count Zeppelin was making?
● What two companies did Zeppelin establish, and what did each company do?
● Who was Hugo Eckener and how did he go from newspaper reporter to zeppelin
pilot?
● Find a couple of quotes from the text that prove that DELAG had success in its
early years.
● Look back over the chapter. What does the author think we need to know in
order to understand the story of the Hindenburg?
Interesting Topics:
● Problem/Solution: a lot of development in technology is the reaction to problems
that need solutions. Find problem/solution pairs in this chapter. Find instances
where a solution also brought along a new problem.
● Foreshadowing: The explosion of the LZ4 nicely foreshadows what would
eventually be the Hindenburg’s fate.
Further Research:
● World history: what was going on in Europe at the time? Not only was World War
I about to break out, but other conflicts before had set the stage for a German
military that was seeking technological advantages.
●
Some of the same topics as in chapter 1: development of lighter than air craft,
rigid airships in particular; how they work; where was airplane technology at the
time.
Chapter 3 –
War Machine
(pp. 26-34
– 9 pages
with 2 large
illustrations)
Summary:
● The use of zeppelins by Germany during World War I is examined.
Vocabulary:
● air raid
● incendiary
● phosphorus
● braggart
Illustrations:
● Photo: French soldiers inspect a crashed zeppelin during World War I
● Photo: ruins of a London hospital, destroyed in part by a zeppelin raid in World
War I
● Illustration: British anti-zeppelin propaganda poster/advertisement
Sidebars:
● World War I is summarized
● A German children’s song about how zeppelins would destroy England and help
win the war
● The effectiveness of zeppelin bombing raids is questioned
● Info on a London air raid in 1915
● Details how zeppelins were treated in the Treaty of Versailles at the end of WWI
and how in a separate treaty the US required Germany to build a zeppelin for
them
Questions:
● Why do you think the author starts this chapter with the January 1915 bombing
of England by German zeppelins? What would she want you to know or
remember?
● Using direct quotes from the text, what kinds of technical details (both
advantages and disadvantages) of zeppelins are revealed throughout this
chapter?
● Overall, how successful were zeppelins as war machines? What advantages did
they give Germany? What kinds of missions were they especially good (or bad)
for? What drawbacks did they have that could be exploited by enemies?
● What kinds of flying vehicles did other countries have during World War I?
● Describe an “air raid.” How effective were German air raids using zeppelins?
How did England react to German air raids? What kinds of technological and
strategic changes did England use to counteract zeppelin raids?
● Ultimately, what factors of zeppelin construction made them unsuitable for use in
war? What was a very likely end for a wartime zeppelin?
● How did the end of the war contribute affect the availability of German
zeppelins?
Interesting Topics:
● Problem/solution: zeppelins were developed as a solution to certain problems;
nations being attacked by zeppelins, in turn, developed countering technologies
and strategies to exploit a huge weakness (the fact that the zeppelin was a bag
of explosive gas).
Further Research:
● What modern technologies used by ordinary citizens today started life as military
projects?
● World War I - expand on the basic facts presented in this chapter. When did it
start and end, who was involved, what were they fighting over, and in particular
what was the level of military technology at the time? Were airplanes around,
was there an “air force”, was there radar, was there radio communication, why
would the zeppelins have such a hard time hitting their targets, etc.?
Chapter 4 –
The Future
of Air Travel
(pp. 36-44 – 9
pages, 2 large
illustrations)
Summary:
● Between the end of WWI and the late 1920s, nations like England, Italy, France
and the US used German-built or locally-built airships and experienced a
number of crashes. Despite these failures, a couple of key successes led to the
continued use of airships in the US and Germany. In the US, the airship Los
Angeles, lifted by non-flammable helium, served the military safely. And the
German-built Graf Zeppelin, a luxury passenger airship, made a sensational
voyage around the world in 1929, to international acclaim.
Vocabulary:
● ticker-tape
● backer (financial sense)
● transatlantic
Illustrations:
● Photo: a British airship
● Photo: Hugo Eckener and the crew of the Los Angeles
● Photo: the Graf Zeppelin over Tokyo
Sidebars:
● Info on the mysterious disappearance of the airship Dixmude over the
Mediterranean Sea in 1923
● Info on Italy’s usage of airships to explore the Arctic, including a crash landing
that stranded and killed several explorers
● Information on Helium and how the US acquired it
● The R 101 Disaster: because of stiff competition between British airship
companies, a flawed airship was launched on a flight to India. It went through
some bad weather and eventually crashed in France, killing 50 people. This
disaster brought Britain’s airship industry to an end.
● Facts about the Graf Zeppelin
Questions:
● After World War I, what successes and failures did Britain experience with
regard to airships?
● What airship successes and failures did other nations (including France, Italy
and the United States) experience?
● What key difference did US-built airships have?
● Describe the LZ 126: which nation built it, who was in charge of the Zeppelin
Company at the time, which nation operated it, what features did it have, why
couldn’t it make transatlantic crossings as it had been designed to do, and how
was it used over the years?
● Why couldn’t Germany build airships between 1918 and 1926?
● What remarkable feat did the newly built luxury German airship Graf Zeppelin
accomplish in 1928? How did US citizens respond?
● Use information from chapter 1 and compare the statistics of the Hindenburg
with those of the Graf Zeppelin (p. 42).
● What did Hugo Eckener hope to establish in the United States? How did he
decide to raise money for this endeavor?
● Describe the Graf Zeppelin’s around-the-world flight. When and where did it
start, how long did it take, how did people react, when and where did it end, and
how did it affect public opinion of airship travel?
● What event in 1929 ultimately ended Britain’s desire to use airships for
transportation? (see sidebar on p. 41)
Interesting Topics:
● Tolerance for failure: it’s hard to imagine accident after accident in these
aircraft, and yet the public still being interested in traveling in them. What
other dangerous technologies did (or do) people endure longer than one might
expect? For example, was early automobile travel dangerous compared to
today?
● Found it very interesting how losing a war could result in a nation “owing” various
countries goods and services like “build us an airship.” And how it can lead to the
losing nation also losing control over its unique technologies. And specifically
how Germany and the US seemed to be cooperating in the late 20s, at least in
some regards.
● Author’s craft: contrasting disaster after disaster with a couple of significant
successes - creates a kind of tension or suspense. Though by this point we
already know the fate of the Hindenburg - we already know the end of the story.
Perhaps the feeling of tension is not due to suspense, it’s due to dramatic irony.
We can see something the people in the story can’t. So the earlier disasters
seem like warnings that no one is heeding, and the successes seem like
aberrations or cruel, taunting jokes played by fate...
Further Research:
● Who was William Randolph Hearst?
● Further details on some of the ships and crashes mentioned.
● Further details about the Graf Zeppelin and its around-the-world voyage.
● Where was airplane technology in the 1920s, by comparison?
● US-Germany relations after WWI.
● Hydrogen vs. helium - similarities and differences, why were German
airships using hydrogen, why and when did the US start using helium? http://
www.airships.net/
Chapter 5 –
The Greatest
Airship (pp.
46-54 – 9
pages, 2 large
illustrations)
Summary:
● In the early 1930s, Hugo Eckener received financial backing from the rising
Nazi party in Germany and began construction of a new airship which was
powered by diesel engines, had a silvery compound coating the outer cover,
and contained the passengers within the body of the airship. This ship, the
Hindenburg, was used along with other airships to drop propaganda literature
within Germany to support the Nazi party. After a bumpy first voyage, the
Hindenburg had a successful first year of flying, including transatlantic flights
between Germany and the US that were fast, comfortable and safe.
Vocabulary:
● diesel fuel
● gastight
● doping
● propaganda
Illustrations:
● Photo: the Hindenburg being constructed
● Photo: the Hindenburg bearing Nazi decorations
● Photo: the Hindenburg in the Lakehurst NJ hangar; Nazi markings visible
Sidebars:
● Helium or Hydrogen: explains why Eckener chose hydrogen over helium for the
Hindenburg even though the ship was built with the ability to use the safer gas
● Nazi Germany: briefly describes the rise of the Nazi party in the early 1930s and
how this led to the start of World War II
● The Olympics: the Hindenburg was used by Hitler to show off at the 1936 Berlin
Olympics
● Airmail: the Hindenburg was used to deliver mail via dropped bags
● Speed: the Hindenburg could cross the Atlantic in a couple of days, as compared
to a week on an ocean liner
Questions:
● Despite the success of the Graf Zeppelin, what event forced Eckener to wait until
1933 to start work on an even bigger airship?
● Where did Eckener get the financial backing for the Hindenburg?
● What features of the Hindenburg were included specifically to reduce the risk
of fire or explosion? What was the “doping” compound? What differences were
made in terms of carrying passengers?
● What was happening in Germany between 1933 and the time of the Hindenburg
explosion in 1937? What did the Nazi party want to do with zeppelins?
● How was Nazi propaganda spread? What did they do to the tail fins of the Graf
Zeppelin and the Hindenburg to help spread propaganda?
● What happened to the Hindenburg as it was getting ready for its propaganda
voyage in March 1936? How did Eckener react, and how was he then treated by
the German government?
● What happened on the Hindenburg’s first flight to Brazil?
● How did the first trip from Germany to the US go in 1936? And how did the
Hindenburg’s first year of service go, overall? What was done with the airship
during the coldest parts of winter?
● What was planned for the Hindenburg’s second year of flying and what changes
were made to the airship?
Interesting Topics:
● There is evidently a strained relationship between Eckener and the Nazi party.
This would perhaps be the equivalent of a businessman today who has a
government contract but doesn’t like the political party who is in charge at the
time. So maybe some compare/contrast action here.
● Problem/solution: further refinements in the Hindenburg were reactions to past
problems.
Further Research:
● As above, more details on the Hindenburg: anything that made it different
from previous airships; anything that was specifically designed to reduce the
possibility of fire or explosion; the “doping” compound; the separate gas “cells”,
etc.
● The rise of the Nazi party, and the party’s use of propaganda, focusing on preWar times since the Hindenburg explosion happens before the start of WWII.
● The Berlin Olympics
Chapter 6 – Up
Ship! (pp. 5662 – 7 pages,
1 large and
one medium
illustration)
Summary:
● Nazi security had cause to be extra vigilant before the Hindenburg’s final flight,
as the German embassy had received a bomb threat letter. They searched the
Hindenburg and its incoming luggage with extra care, and Nazi security kept an
eye on what they considered to be a few suspicious passengers. The luxurious
conditions, as well as some interesting precautions, on board the airship are
described, and the chapter ends with the craft peacefully approaching New
Jersey on the morning of the disaster.
Vocabulary:
● pressurized
● air lock
Illustrations:
● Photo: German Ambassador Hans Luther
● Photo: The kitchen of the Hindenburg
● Photo: Inside the Hindenburg, maybe in a lounge, with a large wall map that
allowed passengers to track the progress of the voyage
Sidebars:
● Cost of Flight: info on how much a ticket cost and comparative value
● Suspicious Passengers: details on a few passengers of the Hindenburg’s final
flight who were considered suspicious by the Nazis
● Passenger in the Interior of the Airship: details how one passenger is known to
have gone into restricted parts of the airship
● Piano: trivia about a lightweight piano on board
Questions:
● Why did German security troops make a special search of the Hindenburg just
before its fateful final voyage? What hindered that search?
● Who was Captain Lehmann and why did he decide to go on the trip? Use the
book’s index if you need to find more information on him elsewhere in the book.
● What were the normal baggage inspection procedures for passengers before
boarding an airship such as the Hindenburg? What was unusual about these
inspections before the final voyage?
● Who among the passengers did Nazi security pay special attention to, and why?
● Describe the passenger areas of the Hindenburg and any special restrictions
passengers had to follow.
● Describe some of the luxury features the passengers had access to. How was
the food?
● Describe what was going on in the morning on May 6, 1937 on board the
Hindenburg as preparations were made for landing in New Jersey.
● In terms of the author’s craft of relating an interesting story, is this a good point in
the story to end a chapter?
Interesting Topics:
● Author’s craft: using various details regarding security, including a bomb threat,
suspicious passengers, thorough searches of passenger luggage, suspicious
passenger behavior, even the setup of the smoking area - and then contrasting
them with practical details of the trip (what the food was like, the relatively calm
weather) to create tension.
Further Research:
● Details about the bomb threat letter
● Details about the passenger accommodations and services aboard the
Hindenburg
Chapter 7 –
Explosion in
the Sky (pp.
64-7 – 7 pages
with 2 large
illustrations)
Summary:
● Windy weather delayed the Hindenburg’s arrival at Lakehurst NJ on May 6,
1937, and when it finally did arrive word came that it was not yet safe to land.
After circling the area until about 6pm, word came that this was the safest time to
land. The airship approached the landing area, came to a stop and dropped its
landing lines to the ground crew. Then it caught fire and crashed to the ground.
Vocabulary:
● rigger or rigging (as it pertains to airships or general nautical terminology)
● bow
● stern
● mooring mast
● landing lines
Illustrations:
● Photo: Captain Max Pruss
● Photo: Hindenburg over New York, while it was delayed landing in New Jersey
● Photo: The Hindenburg on the ground, ablaze
Sidebars:
● trivia about a mooring mast built on top of the Empire State Building, including
why it was never used
● Background on Captain Pruss’ experience landing airships in rough weather
● Trivia on the planned return flight of the Hindenburg which would leave late that
same night; many witnesses to the explosion were ticketholders for that return
flight.
● Trivia regarding the civilian workers at the Lakehurst Naval Air Station
● Details on where many of the Hindenburg passengers were on the airship when
the explosion took place
Questions:
● What caused the Hindenburg to be delayed in its arrival in New Jersey on May
6? About how far behind schedule was it?
● Who were each of the following people and what decisions did they have to
make regarding the operations or landing of the Hindenburg that day? Captain
Max Pruss; Commander Charles Rosendahl; chief rigger Ludwig Knoor.
● Where did the captain take the Hindenburg while it was killing some time, waiting
for the weather to improve at Lakehurst? What sorts of sights did the passengers
see?
● Besides poor weather conditions, what other unusual situation was noticed on
board the Hindenburg by crew members?
● What was going on with the weather when Captain Pruss got the message from
Commander Rosendahl that it was time to land?
● What sort of crowd was at Lakehurst the evening the Hindenburg was trying to
land? How do we today have so many photographs and eyewitness accounts of
what happened?
● Describe some of the technical details of landing an airship as described on p.
69. How many people were involved, how did the airship control its ascent and
descent, how did the ground crew secure the craft to the ground, etc.?
● What was happening just before the Hindenburg caught on fire?
● The next chapter starts with the world’s reaction to the disaster. Where do you
have to go in this book to relive the explosion and crash?
● At this point, if you were going to investigate the disaster, what main issues
would you investigate?
Interesting Topics:
● Author’s craft: just like the captain of the airship, the author had some time to kill
in this chapter. How does the description of the side trips and delays help build
suspense and also provide details on the era in which these people lived?
●
Author’s craft and cause/effect: in a sense we are being presented with a bit
of a mystery. We know the Hindenburg explodes and crashes, but we do not
yet know what caused it. So, rather like a mystery writer, the author is lining
up a bunch of details, some of which will turn out to not be the cause of the
disaster (like red herrings in a mystery). All of these factors would probably be
examined by investigators after the crash in order to figure out the cause/effect
relationships.
Further Research:
● Map of New England - make sure you know where some of the US cities
mentioned in this chapter are (Boston, New York, Lakehurst NJ) and rough
distances between them.
● Further technical details on landing an airship (i.e. what is a mooring mast,
where do the passengers disembark, what kinds of maintenance needs to
be done on an airship after a voyage, when the captain releases some of the
hydrogen how is it replenished, how far above the ground is the craft when it
releases its landing lines, etc.).
Chapter 8 –
Summary:
Shock and
● The media, governments and citizens react to the news of the disaster.
Outrage (pp.
Vocabulary:
72-80 – 9 pages
● susceptible
with 3 large
● correspondent
illustrations)
● aftermath
● ministry (as in a government or military department)
● sabotage
● harrowing
● retract
● speculate
Illustrations:
● Photo: officials listed names of survivors on a chalkboard
● Photo: injured man on a stretcher
● Front page of the Los Angeles Times with a huge headline and photo of the
Hindenburg in the air and on fire
● Photo: funeral for German victims of the disaster, their coffins draped with Nazi
flags
Sidebars:
● Quote from a reporter about Eckener and stating that he (the reporter) has faith
in dirigibles and would fly again given the chance
● Quote from Eckener expressing regret that he had allowed hydrogen to be used
when the craft was designed to use helium
● Major sidebar about Captain Ernst Lehmann, who had been in command of
the Hindenburg during its first season, and was on board the airship during the
disaster as an observer; he was injured and later died of these injuries.
● President Roosevelt sends condolences to Adolf Hitler after the crash.
● Information on a 1975 Hindenburg movie that relied heavily on the bombing/
sabotage theory of the cause of the disaster.
Questions:
● Despite the general history of airship disasters, why was the public surprised at
the Hindenburg disaster?
● Why was there confusion about the incident on board the Graf Zeppelin during
its flight from Brazil to Germany? How did the captain of that airship break the
news to the crew and passengers?
● What did Hugo Eckener do when he learned of the disaster?
●
●
What was Eckener warned by the Nazis to stop doing? Did he comply?
If you were a US citizen at the time of the disaster, what were some of the ways
you might have gotten the news? Do you think the fact that photographers were
able to take pictures and a radio announcer was able to describe the disaster as
it was happening had an impact on the news coverage?
● What details of the event do you learn from people who were onboard and
escaped during the crash, such as Ernst Lehmann and the Adelts?
● Initially there was no clear information on the cause of the fire and the crash.
How did the sabotage theory gain traction? Besides sabotage, look back at
previous chapters and come up with other theories about the cause that would
be plausible.
Interesting Topics:
● Role of the media in covering disasters: the effects of photos of the actual event
in progress, interviews with survivors who made harrowing escapes. This was
neither the first nor the worst airship disaster. Was the media coverage for this
disaster unique? Was it the coverage that helped shape public perception and
bring about the end of the age of airships?
● How did governments react to the disaster? We get a sense of how the Nazis
wanted Eckener to downplay the sabotage theory. Does this sort of thing happen
here, today?
● Conspiracy theories: when a disaster like this happens, is it human nature to
construct theories that blame people? Is there something more compelling or
comforting in thinking a bad person planted a bomb, as opposed to a freak
accident of nature?
Further Research:
● Primary source documents: news accounts from the period. For example, three
pages [page 1, page 4, page 5] of the La Crosse Tribune And Leader Press from
May 7, 1937
● Hermann Goring
● Austria (why was Eckener in Austria, how close is Austria to Germany and what
was their relationship in 1937?)
Chapter
9 – The
Investigation
(pp. 82-94 – 13
pages, 2 large
illustrations)
Summary:
● The US investigation determined that there was no evidence that a bomb or
other sabotage took place, and that the likely cause was a rupture or leak in one
of the gas cells ignited by an electric spark. Unable to acquire helium to replace
the flammable hydrogen and facing more advanced aircraft as World War II
approached, the Germans retired their zeppelin program. In 1997, a new theory
about the cause of the disaster became popular but was also disproved. Today,
nonrigid airships such as blimps, lifted by nonflammable helium, are in use.
Vocabulary:
● doping agent
● St. Elmo’s fire
● water ballast
● rudder
Illustrations:
● Photo: aerial shot of the burned out wreck of the Hindenburg on the ground
● Photo: people among the debris
● Color Photo: a modern-day Zeppelin airship
Sidebars:
● St. Elmo’s Fire was believed to be a possible source of the electric spark
● Germany carried out its own investigation
● Eckener and the US Navy: in the 1940s Eckener was approached by the US
about the possibility of rebuilding the airship industry, but ultimately there was no
financial backing available.
● End of the Zeppelin: Captain Pruss held a view that World War II was the real
cause of the end of the age of airships, not the Hindenburg disaster
● Today’s Blimps: trivial info
Questions:
● What evidence and logic supported the sabotage theory? What evidence and
logic refuted it?
● What evidence and logic supported the “spark theory”? What evidence and logic
refuted it?
● What did the US investigation ultimately conclude?
● How did seeing the wreckage of the Hindenburg affect Eckener personally?
● What became of the LZ 130 airship built in 1938? What technology was
advancing that made zeppelins vulnerable to attacks?
● What was “Bain’s Theory” and when did it come about? What were its merits and
flaws?
● The Hindenburg disaster marked the end of the “age of airships.” What kinds of
airship technology continue to be used today?
Interesting Topics:
● Cause & Effect: a lot of the investigation centers on this, but in reverse - they
could see effects and had to theorize as to causes.
Further Research:
● St. Elmo’s Fire
● Layout of the Hindenburg - where was gas cell #4 as referred to in the text?
● Further details on the various theories about the cause of the Hindenburg
disaster, including Bain’s theory (discounted here http://www.airships.net/blog/
hindenburg-covering-rocket-fuel).
● New or revised theories since this book was published?
● Airships (including blimps) today http://money.cnn.com/video/technology/2013/
07/17/t-goodyear-new-blimp-nt.cnnmoney/index.html
Other notes:
● If you need to combine chapters, 6 & 7 are both relatively short.