| The Zeppelin: An Illustrated History Contributor(s): Carradice, Phil (Author) |
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ISBN: 1781555052 ISBN-13: 9781781555057 Publisher: Fonthill Media OUR PRICE: $21.60 Product Type: Paperback Published: November 2016 |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - History | Military - Aviation - History | Military - World War I - Transportation | Aviation - History |
| Dewey: 629.133 |
| Physical Information: 0.3" H x 6" W x 9.2" (0.57 lbs) 128 pages |
| Themes: - Chronological Period - 1900-1919 - Chronological Period - 1920's - Chronological Period - 1930's - Cultural Region - Germany |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: For a brief period in the early Twentieth Century it seemed as if the future of air travel lay with the giant airships of Count von Zeppelin. The First World War ended that dream, fixed wing aircraft superseding the slow moving and unwieldy airships. As weapons of war the Zeppelins were never truly successful although they did manage to terrify huge numbers of unknowing and na ve civilians--perhaps more by imagination than by any practical manifestation of their power. The Zeppelin crews of the First World War spent hours in the air, cold and hungry--and with the prospect of a horrendous death, either by fire or by falling thousands of feet to the ground, ever present. As vehicles of mass destruction the Zeppelins were remarkably ineffective. Their real value, lay in their ability to make silent reconnaissance missions over enemy territory and sea lanes. In the postwar days the public began to realize that airships offered a form of air travel that was comfortable, mostly stable and, sometimes, even luxurious. 'The Graf Zeppelin' and the 'Hindenburg' were the height of elegance. Unfortunately, they had two major defects--they were vulnerable to the elements and, due to the hydrogen that kept them aloft, they were also highly flammable. The 'Hindenburg' disaster of 1937 effectively spelled the end of the giant airship as a commercial enterprise but for almost half a century these wonderful machines had cruised elegantly through the clouds. |
Contributor Bio(s): Carradice, Phil: - Phil Carradice is a well-known writer and historian with over 60 books to his credit. A poet, story teller and broadcaster, his most recent books are 'The Cuban Missile Crisis' (Pen and Sword), 'The Call Up' (Fonthill) and the novel 'Stargazers' for Accent Press. He is a regular broadcaster on BBC Radio and TV, presents the BBC Wales History programme 'The Past Master' and is widely regarded as one of the finest creative writing tutors in Wales. |