LZ 37 explained

LZ 37
Number Built:	77
Sole Example Of Type?:	N
Type:	M-Class Zeppelin
Manufacturer:	Luftschiffbau Zeppelin at Friedrichshafen
Construction Number:	LZ 37
First Flight:	4 March 1915
In Service:	4 March 1915 – 7 June 1915
Flights:	14
Fate:	Shot down, 7 June 1915

The airship LZ 37 was a World War I Zeppelin of the German Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial Navy). It was the first Zeppelin to be brought down during the war by an enemy plane, on the night of 6 to 7 June 1915, near Sint-Amandsberg, Belgium.

History

In 1915 Zeppelins were first used by Germany for strategic bombing.^[1]

LZ 37 was part of a raid with Zeppelins LZ 38 and LZ 39. While returning, she was intercepted in the air by Reginald Warneford in his Morane Parasol during its first raid on Calais, on 7 June 1915.^{[2] [3]} Warneford dropped six 200NaN0 Hales bombs on the zeppelin, which caught fire and crashed into the convent school of Sint-Amandsberg, next to Ghent, Belgium, killing two nuns. The commander of LZ 37, Oberleutnant, and seven members of the crew were killed. One crew member, Steuermann Alfred Mühler, survived with only superficial burns and bruises when he was precipitated from the forward gondola, landing in a bed.^[4] It was the first victory of a heavier-than-air aircraft over a lighter-than-air dirigible. Warneford was awarded the Victoria Cross for his achievement.

LZ 37 was based in, Belgium (airport location:), where also other heavy bombers Gotha G IV were based.^{[5] [6]}

References

• Book: Castle, Ian . London 1914–17: The Zeppelin Menace . Osprey Pub . Oxford, UK New York, NY. USA . 2008 . 978-1-84603-245-5 .
• Book: Brooks, Peter . Zeppelin: Rigid Airships, 1893-1940 . Smithsonian Institution Press . Washington, D.C. . 1992 . 978-1-56098-228-9 .
• Book: Faulkner, Neil . In Search of the Zeppelin war: The archaeology of the First Blitz . Tempus . Stroud . 2008 . 978-0-7524-4182-5 .
• Book: Stephenson, Charles . Zeppelins: German Airships 1900–40 . Osprey . Oxford . 2004 . 1-84176-692-5 .
• Web site: Puget Sound Airship Society: Zeppelin Airships 1900–1917 . pugetairship.org . 2008 . 29 June 2013.

External links

• Web site: Canvasprogramma 'Publiek Geheim' belicht Gontrode (Melle) - Het Nieuwsblad . Ann . Braeckman . nieuwsblad.be . 20 January 2011 . 29 June 2013 . nl.
• Web site: Bunkers op voormalig WOI-WOII vliegveld - Hangar Flying . aviationheritage.eu . 2013 . 29 June 2013.
• Web site: Zeppelin Raiders - History of British Pilots who Shot Down German Airships in WW1 . Arch . Whitehouse . acepilots.com . 2012 . 29 June 2013.
• Web site: Bekijk onderwerp - LZ 37 Monument Westerbegraafplaats . forumeerstewereldoorlog.nl . 2007 . 29 June 2013 . 4 March 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120304131200/http://forumeerstewereldoorlog.nl/viewtopic.php?t=8698 . dead .
• Web site: Vliegveld te Lemberge / Gontrode . forumeerstewereldoorlog.nl . 2007 . 29 June 2013 . 16 March 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150316140127/http://forumeerstewereldoorlog.nl/viewtopic.php?t=8067 . dead .
• Web site: Zeppelinsteine und anderes . luftschiffharry.de . 2013 . 29 June 2013 . https://archive.today/20130211093537/http://www.luftschiffharry.de/Zeppelinsteine-und-anderes.htm . 11 February 2013 . dead .
• Web site: De val van de Zeppelin . nieuwsblad.be . 8 May 2008. 29 June 2013. nl.
• Web site: The Zeppelin is Down . Raul . Colon . aviation-history.com . 2007. 29 June 2013.

Notes and References

1. Web site: The National Archives - Homepage . The National Archives . The National Archives UK . 8 February 2024 . 4 September 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240904101123/https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/zeppelin-raids/ . live .
2. Web site: Zeppelin LZ 37 te Sint-Amandsberg. Piet. Dhanens. Luchtvaartgeschiedenis.be. 12 April 2013. nl. 2019-12-29. 2019-12-29. https://web.archive.org/web/20191229211215/https://www.luchtvaartgeschiedenis.be/content/zeppelin-lz-37-te-sint-amandsberg. dead.
3. Book: Dhanens, Piet. Een eeuw luchtvaart boven Gent. 2008. Flying Pencil. 978-90-78878-04-9. 1. Erembodegem (Aalst). nl. 1074669308.
4. History of the First World War, vol. 3, pp. 986.
5. Web site: Ghent . Thomas . 2012 . KG III Der Englandflieger . https://web.archive.org/web/20130914041247/http://thomasgenth.de/html/beim_kg_iii_.html . 2013-09-14 . 29 June 2013 . thomasgenth.de . de.
6. Book: White, C. M. . The Gotha summer: the German daytime air raids on England, May to August 1917 . 1986 . Hale . 978-0-7090-2791-1 . London.