×
Aircraft / Aviation Vehicles & Artillery Small Arms Warships & Submarines Military Ranks Military Pay Chart (2024) Special Forces
HOME
AVIATION INDEX
MODERN AIR FORCES
AIRCRAFT BY COUNTRY
AIRCRAFT MANUFACTURERS
COMPARE AIRCRAFT
AIRCRAFT BY CONFLICT
AIRCRAFT BY TYPE
AIRCRAFT BY DECADE
WWI AIRCRAFT
Aviation / Aerospace

Zeppelin L.10 (LZ-40)


P-class Airship [ 1915 ]



German airship LZ-40 managed several raids against Britain in World War 1 but was lost to a lightning strike in early September of 1915.



Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 07/31/2019 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site.

VIEW SPECIFICATIONS [+]
The Zeppelin was a rigid, "lighter-than-air" manned aircraft developed by German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the latter part of the 1800s. The design was finalized by 1895 and the style born into aviation history using the classic "cigar" shape which was tapered at both ends and powered by propeller-driving engines suspended in individual nacelles under the aircraft. The "Zeppelin", as it came to be known, grew in popularity with the masses for its unique appearance and travel range. Internally, the fabric shell housed a line of light alloy structure (duralumin) and contained cells usually filled with hydrogen or helium. The filling provided the vessel with its required lighter-than-air quality. A compartment was typically affixed to the underside of the design - either to ferry passengers from one destination to another or to provide military personnel with unfettered views of a region ahead from a bird's eye perspective. The first Zeppelin to ferry passengers was LZ.6 in 1909 while the first German Zeppelin was accepted for service that same year in March. The first German Zeppelin to bomb England in World War 1 (1914-1918) was L.3 and L.4 at Great Yarmouth and King's Lynn respectively, this on January 15th/16th, 1915.

At the start of World War 1, some 21 Zeppelins were in circulation to which the German military operated 14 between its Army and Navy branches and further examples were confiscated from DELAG, the world's first airliner company. Zeppelin designs were evolved considerably in the lead up to war and proved valuable in the opening stages of the conflict due to their operating altitudes and endurance. For the German military, the Zeppelin served for scouting and reconnaissance while others were eventually graduated to an early, albeit cruse, form of strategic bombing as fixed-wing aircraft still lacked the required ranges to reach Britain across the North Sea.

The L.10 served as one such German military Zeppelin. She exhibited the traditional tapered cigar shape with stabilizing fins added to her aft section. Power was served through 4 x Maybach C-X series engines of 210 horsepower each which provided the airship with a maximum speed of 57 miles per hour and an operational range of 2,700 miles. Operating ceilings ranged up to 10,500 feet. These qualifications were adequate in the early part of the war where the airship could essentially out-climb an enemy interceptor. Dimensions included a running length of 536 feet, 6 inches, a diameter of 61 feet, 4 inches and a height of 79 feet, 4 inches - certainly a large and visible target. Maximum take-off weight was listed at 35,000lbs. Her typical operating crew was eighteen personnel and defense was through a collection of three or four machine guns. Her complete bomb load was 5,840lbs.

First flight of L.10 was recorded on May 13th, 1915. L.10 served as her tactical designation while she carried the production designation of "LZ-40".

L.10 served with the German Naval Airship Division and represented one of the early (and improved) "P-class" Zeppelin forms. She was involved in several air raids against Britain during her wartime career including one such mission on June 4th, 1915. On this sortie, the vessel was misguided by strong winds which sent her in the direction of Gravesend (east of London) where she ended up dropping her bombs. Such results proved all too common for airship raids and led to much random bombing, usually over civilian populations.

As night time hours decreased over the summer months of 1915, airship raids were, in turn, curtailed to a certain extent - they presented obvious tempting targets in daylight hours. L.10 returned to Britain, this time at Tyneside, between June 15th/16th, to engage targets but, again, results were poor. On August 12th/13th, L.10 was involved in a four-strong airship raid over Harwich with better results - L.10 being the only airship to reach the intended target area. In an attack on the Lea Valley reservoirs on August 17th/18th, 1915, L.10 was once again put off course and ended attacking Leyton and Walthamstow resulting in the deaths of 10 persons with 48 injuries despite a threat from British interception aircraft and ground-based anti-aircraft fire.

The service career of L.10 came to an abrupt end when, on September 3rd, 1915, the aircraft was struck by lightning in a storm over the North Sea. The vessel was forced to crash land which claimed the lives of all of her 19-man crew near Cuxhaven. Such ended the flying career of German Zeppelin L.10.

In all, L.10 completed eight reconnaissance sorties over the North Sea and participated in five bombing missions against Britain. In these missions, she dropped a total of 1,984lbs (9,900kg) of ordnance.

From a military standpoint, strategic bombing using Zeppelins led to very mixed results. They largely served a psychological purpose to showcase enemy civilians that no place was safe from the reach of the Germans, especially London. Bombing was rather indiscriminant and rarely led to the defined target being struck and night time results proved much poorer due to visibility - largely reliant on maps, memory and visual references. Conversely, interceptors and ground-based cannon fire found it difficult - if not impossible - to locate and engage enemy airships in the dark. Airship pilots had the added advantage of quick climbing and losing any attackers in clouds should the sky provide them - early aircraft required up to one hour to reach the required engagement altitudes. Where German Zeppelins proved their worth was in over-the-horizon reconnaissance, particularly of the North Sea, where airship commanders could work in unison with surface naval forces in locating enemy warships, convoys or minefields. Indeed, a large percentage of missions involved simple reconnaissance over strategic bombing of targets. The age of the wartime airship was further curtailed with the widespread adoption of incendiary ammunition which held a tendency to ignite the highly flammable hydrogen being used in German airships like the L.10.

The only combined German Army/Navy air raid involving airships against London was on September 2nd/3rd, 1916 and this involved six Zeppelins. However, poor weather limited effectiveness of the raid and SL.11 lost to an intercepting British BE.2c. As losses mounted, the German Army gave up use of Zeppelins in February of 1917 while Navy use lingered on due to their usefulness in the reconnaissance role - ultimately enlisted some total 73 airships for service.©MilitaryFactory.com
Note: The above text is EXCLUSIVE to the site www.MilitaryFactory.com. It is the product of many hours of research and work made possible with the help of contributors, veterans, insiders, and topic specialists. If you happen upon this text anywhere else on the internet or in print, please let us know at MilitaryFactory AT gmail DOT com so that we may take appropriate action against the offender / offending site and continue to protect this original work.

Specifications



German Empire
Manufacturer(s)
German Empire
Operators National flag of the German Empire
1915
Service Year
Imperial Germany
National Origin
Retired
Project Status
18
Crew
1
Units


GROUND ATTACK
Ability to conduct aerial bombing of ground targets by way of (but not limited to) guns, bombs, missiles, rockets, and the like.


536.4 ft
(163.50 meters)
Length
61.4 ft
(18.70 meters)
Width/Span
79.4 ft
(24.20 meters)
Height
34,998 lb
(15,875 kilograms)
Maximum Take-Off Weight


4 x Maybach C-X engines developing 210 horsepower each.
Propulsion
58 mph
(93 kph | 50 knots)
Max Speed
10,499 ft
(3,200 m | 2 miles)
Ceiling
2,700 miles
(4,345 km | 2,346 nm)
Range


MACH Regime (Sonic)
Sub
Trans
Super
Hyper
HiHyper
ReEntry
RANGES (MPH) Subsonic: <614mph | Transonic: 614-921 | Supersonic: 921-3836 | Hypersonic: 3836-7673 | Hi-Hypersonic: 7673-19180 | Reentry: >19030


STANDARD:
3 or 4 x 7.92mm machine guns on trainable mountings.

OPTIONAL:
Up to 5,840lb of conventional drop bombs as needed.


0
Hardpoints


L.10 - Tactical Designation
LZ-40 - Production Number


Military lapel ribbon for Operation Allied Force
Military lapel ribbon for the Arab-Israeli War
Military lapel ribbon for the Battle of Britain
Military lapel ribbon for the Battle of Midway
Military lapel ribbon for the Berlin Airlift
Military lapel ribbon for the Chaco War
Military lapel ribbon for the Cold War
Military lapel ribbon for the Cuban Missile Crisis
Military lapel ribbon for pioneering aircraft
Military lapel ribbon for the Falklands War
Military lapel ribbon for the French-Indochina War
Military lapel ribbon for the Golden Age of Flight
Military lapel ribbon for the 1991 Gulf War
Military lapel ribbon for the Indo-Pak Wars
Military lapel ribbon for the Iran-Iraq War
Military lapel ribbon for the Korean War
Military lapel ribbon for the 1982 Lebanon War
Military lapel ribbon for the Malayan Emergency
Military lapel ribbon representing modern aircraft
Military lapel ribbon for the attack on Pearl Harbor
Military lapel ribbon for the Six Day War
Military lapel ribbon for the Soviet-Afghan War
Military lapel ribbon for the Spanish Civil War
Military lapel ribbon for Special Forces
Military lapel ribbon for the Suez Crisis
Military lapel ribbon for the Ukranian-Russian War
Military lapel ribbon for the Vietnam War
Military lapel ribbon for Warsaw Pact of the Cold War-era
Military lapel ribbon for the WASP (WW2)
Military lapel ribbon for the World War 1
Military lapel ribbon for the World War 2
Military lapel ribbon for the Yom Kippur War
Military lapel ribbon for experimental x-plane aircraft

Images



1 / 1
Image of the Zeppelin L.10 (LZ-40)
Image copyright www.MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.

Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Cookies

2024 Military Pay Chart Military Ranks DoD Dictionary Conversion Calculators Military Alphabet Code Military Map Symbols

The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® U.S. trademarks protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value only and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation. We do not sell any of the items showcased on this site. Please direct all other inquiries to militaryfactory AT gmail.com. No A.I. was used in the generation of this content; site is 100% curated by humans.

Part of a network of sites that includes GlobalFirepower, a data-driven property used in ranking the top military powers of the world, WDMMA.org (World Directory of Modern Military Aircraft), WDMMW.org (World Directory of Modern Military Warships), SR71blackbird.org, detailing the history of the world's most iconic spyplane, and MilitaryRibbons.info, cataloguing military medals and ribbons. Special Interest: RailRoad Junction, the locomotive encyclopedia.


©2023 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • Content ©2003-2023 (20yrs)