Hindenburg outline Thesis: The Hindenburg has contributed to the history of aircraft as well as investigations. I. (opening paragraph) A. attention getter and relate it to Hindenburg B.
thesis statement II. Airship development A. Count von Zeppelins first rigid airships B. Graf Zeppelin III. Paul von Hindenburg: The man that the famous airship was named after.
A. childhood summary B. time in German army C. General Hindenburg D. President Hindenburg E.
later years IV. The Hindenburg A. specifications B. appearances and travel time C. the explosion V.
Explanations of the explosion A. hydrogen theory B. coated inner skin theory C. sabotage theory VI.
conclusion A. Hindenburg, king of rigid airships and the last of them. B. aircraft has changed because of it C. investigations have changed because of it. D.
restate thesis the hindenburgs history and investigation A 747, O.J. Simpson, the Goodyear blimp and the shooting at Columbine High School all have one thing in common. The Hindenburg has contributed to these things in one way or another. The 747 is a modern aircraft that is very popular in commercial airlines.
O.J. Simpson is a man that was charged with the murder of two humans; he was proven not guilty in one court and guilty in another. The shooting at Columbine High School was an occurrence, just over a month ago, in which two students destroyed their high school while killing 15 people. Have you found the connection yet? As you read on, the connection will be clear. The Hindenburg has contributed to the history of aircraft as well as investigations.
The rigid airship took no time to develop into useful source of transportation (Hindenburg video 1). Count Von Zeppelin was the first to create rigid airships (video 1). His idea was to fill many airbags with hydrogen, enclose them in an aerodynamic rigid structure and have onboard engines (video 1). He built the LZ1 and flew it, July 2, 1900, two years before the Wright Brothers first flight (video 1). The Zeppelin company began developing and expanding (video 1). They offered sight seeing tours, but were however, very expensive (video 1).
By 1914, the Zeppelins had carried over 10,000 people over 100,000 miles (video 1). All along the success, the Zeppelins were soon used for a military purpose (video 1). In 1928 the Graf Zeppelin took to the sky (video 1). Its most dramatic fleet was its flight around the world (video 1). It started in America and its first stop was 7,000 miles later in Tokyo, Japan (video 1).
It completed the flight landing in Lakehurst, New Jersey (video 1). Its pilot, Hugo Eckner, became one of the most famous people in the world (video 1). The Graf Zeppelin began carrying passengers from Brazil to Germany on a routine basis (video 1). Both America and Great Britain made a number of rigid airships for different purposes; none of them would be as big or famous as the Hindenburg (video 1). To better understand the overall idea of the largest rigid airship ever built, you must know about the man it was named after. Paul von Hindenburg was born in Poznan, Poland on to the cadet school in Berlin (Hindenburg CD-ROM).
At the age of 19, he enrolled in the Prussian army (CD). Paul experienced the Seven Weeks War and the Franco-Prussian War in only a five year period (CD). Beginning in 1871, Hindenburg served 40 years in the German army (CD). He became general in 1905 and in 1914, accepted the command of the German Eighth Army on the Russian Border (CD).
After an overwhelming victory over Russian troops at Tannenberg, he was promoted to field marshal (CD), He became responsible for the direction of all German forces (CD). In March 1917, he established the Hindenburg Line, which was not broken by Allied armies until October 1918 (CD). He retired from the army in 1919 (CD). he went on, in 1925, to serve as the president of the German Republic for 7 years (CD). It was decided by Hitler, to name the large rigid airship, The Hindenburg, in memory of Germanys honorable ex-president.
Hindenburg was a fearless leader worthy of airship title. The Hindenburg was 70 times the volume of a present day blimp and flew at 80 miles per hour (Hindenburg video 1). It was about the length of three football fields and cruised at an altitude of 1000 feet (video 1). The power plants on the Hindenburg were 4 Dimler-Benz, sixteen cylinder high speed diesel engines (Dick 85). Each engine produced 1300 horsepower for take off, and 850 horsepower for cruising (85). Inside the Hindenburg was a dining room that could seat 50 (Hindenburg video 1).
It had 25, 2 person, cabins (video 1). There were observatories where passengers could enjoy a grand view (video 1). The ride was very quiet (video 1). The first of the engines were mounted 90 feet away from the passenger area and there would be no sounds of vibrations (video 1). The Olympic rigs were painted on the side of the airship for its appearance at the 1936 Berlin Olympics (video 1). The Hindenburg soon became the tool of Nazis making propaganda tours throughout Germany (video 1).
The naval base in Lakehurst, New Jersey became a regular hanger for the Hindenburg (video 1). After making ten transatlantic crossings in regular commercial service in 1936, it was destroyed by fire in 1937 when it was landing at Lakehurst, New Jersey, with 97 passengers and crew; 35 people on board and one crew member were killed. (Bryan 1) After the explosion, investigations began to find to cause of it. Hydrogen was the first blamed and its believed by many to be the true cause of the disaster. After a long investigation and many mysterious allegations, it was finally determined that the Hindenburg exploded and crashed due to the combustion of the hydrogen when it touched the mooring tower and a spark jumped catching the skin on fire. The whole dirigible exploded and crashed in seconds.
Fortunately, out of the hundreds on board, only 37 died. After the static tragedy, all lighter than air crafts were filled with helium which is nonflammable. (Waters 2) But still there was no real explanation of how the hydrogen, which was contained in air tight lining, was freed. The blue ribbon panel stated that the free hydrogen could have resulted from a leaking gas cell or trapped gas that was not properly vented during the weigh-off procedure (Dick 148). This conclusion was accepted by most people (148).
Many people were frightened with the whole idea of hydrogen. Experience shows that hydrogen can be used safely, although it is often perceived as a particularly dangerous fuel. The perception is probably largely due to the Hindenburg disaster, one of the rare accidents involving an energy source that was caught on film. Certainly, the public must be convinced that hydrogen can be used safely before it is introduced on a wide scale.
(Williams 16) Many people had no faith in hydrogen being safe after the incident. Hydrogen, proved here to be the cause of the Hindenburg disaster, could, however, be used as an alternative fuel (Brown 3). It is no more hazardous than gasoline, safer than propane, and is on the same level as natural gas in many ways (3). New theories of the disaster later developed. Hydrogen could not have been the reason of the explosion (Brown 2). There are many areas that prove this (2).
The disaster shows the Hindenburg break into three pieces; if it had been a hydrogen fire this would not have happened (3). Also the footage shows a downward burning; and hydrogen only burns upward (3). In addition, hydrogen burns in a colorless flame; and the footage shows a very large , visible, bright flame (3). William D. Van Vorst proves that the coated of the Hindenburg caused the disaster (3).
The substance used to coat its skin was flammable but also made the fabric more durable (3). It was a combination of iron oxide, cellulose acetate, and aluminum powder (3). Also the way the skin was attached to the frame allowed a large electrostatic charge to build up (3). Resulting from electrostatic activity, the skin became charged and passed the current through the skin to the frame (3). As the current built up, the skin and its highly energetic doping constituents were ignited, setting off the disaster (3).
Other issues came up as possibilities. Many people believed that the Hindenburg explosion was caused by static electricity and hydrogen, but there was a chance of sabotage because it was a Nazi ship (Hindenburg video 2). The fire was started on its rear end which displayed the Nazi swastika on the fins (video 2). Could this be the truth? Other sources disagree.
The Nazis could easily have provided fictious sabotage evidence and framed anyone they desired. It would have been a simple matter for them to do this-as they have in the past. (Dick 150) The Hindenburg was the king of rigid airships and also the last of them. The rigid airship no longer exists; none has been built since the 1930s.
The demise is usually blamed on the Hindenburg disaster although that had been preceded by the loss of a number of American, British, French and Italian rigid. All airships today are non-rigid types, popularly know as blimps. (Layman 3) Aircraft has developed since then and has improved because of it. Investigations have changed since then also because of its so many predictions and scientific possibilities.
The Hindenburg has contributed to the history of aircraft and investigations. works sited Brown, David. Hydrogen Didnt Cause Hindenburg Fire, UCLA Engineer, Former NASA Researcher Find. UCLA NEWS (1998) (http://engineer.ea.ucla.edu/releases/blimp.htm Bryan, Leslie A.
Airship Microsoft Encarta 98 Encyclopedia (1998) CD-ROM Cambou, Don. The Hindenburg. A&E Home Video (1996) (2 tape set) Dick, Harold G. with Robinson, Douglas H.
The Golden Age of the Great Passenger Airships, Graf Zeppelin & Hindenburg. Washington D.C.:Smithsonian Institution Press (1985) — Hindenburg, Paul von Microsoft Encarta 98 Encyclopedia (1998) CD-ROM Layman, R.D. Dirigibles, Airships, Zeppelins, and Blimps. Trenches on the Web-special http://www.worldwar1.com/stzepp.htm Waters, Cynthia. Military Intrigue or Static Disasters? Hindenburg and Flight 800 http://www.edsjornal.com/articles/disaster.htm Williams, Robert H.
Powering The Future 1999 SIRS Mandarin, Inc.—SIRS Government Reporter Spring 1999 History Essays.
