Historical and
Commemorative Medals
Collection of Benjamin Weiss
GRAF FERDINAND VON ZEPPELIN SLOANE, Allen: USA, 1980, Bronze, 101 mm Ferdinand Adolf August Heinrich Graf (Count)
von Zeppelin (1838-1917) was a German aircraft manufacturer, the inventor of
the rigid dirigible or airship balloon and the founder of the Zeppelin
Airship Company. He was born in Konstanz, Grand Duchy of Baden (now part of
Baden-Württemberg), Germany. Count von Zeppelin completed his first rigid
dirigible in 1900. This ship had a rigid frame and served as the prototype
of many subsequent models. The first zeppelin airship consisted of a row of
17 gas cells individually covered in rubberized cloth; the whole was
confined in a cylindrical framework covered with smooth-surfaced cotton
cloth. It was about 420 ft long. The ship was steered by forward and aft
rudders and was driven by two 15-hp Daimler internal-combustion engines,
each rotating two propellers. Passengers, crew and engine were carried in
two aluminum gondolas suspended forward and aft. At its first trial, on July
2, 1900, the airship carried five persons; it attained an altitude of 1300
ft and flew a distance of about 4 miles in 17 minutes. After the First World
War, zeppelins were widely used in commercial flights. However, safety
problems led to accidents, the most notable being the immolation of the
Hindenburg in 1937, at Lakehurst, New Jersey. The replacement of helium for
the highly flammable hydrogen reduced the risks of explosion and improved
its safety, but the dirigible never again attained its former popularity. The zeppelins’ qualities of
streamlined-shape, light rigid framework, and maneuvering power, made them
successful when heavier-than-air machines were yet undeveloped. Perhaps more
importantly, Zeppelin’s quest for a light metal led directly to the
invention of Duraluminum, which was later to make the all-metal airframe
practical. |
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