SB Lighter Than Air

[Tempest]

I really like your latest drawings, I think they're superb.

[CraigH]

Thanks all!
In spare moments I'm trying to dig up useable info/images for the next ones. Right now the priority is Zeppelin's LZ 4 with the ships 3-4 development phases. It's probably the most pivotal of his early ships.

While surfing for data on LZ 4, I crashed into a couple sites with all sorts of goofy, almost steam punk, Victorian, Edwardian looking pre-1900 LTA craft. It may lead to a mashup of drawings proportioned mostly from photo sources with some known dimensions.


CraigH

[CraigH]

France, Santos-Dumont No 5 1901

From Wikipedia and elsewhere: Alberto Santos-Dumont, Brazilian by birth but spent most of his life in France was one of the early 20th century great pioneers of aviation. With the Santos-Dumont No. 5 he won the Deutsch de la Meurthe prize for the first flight from the Parc Saint Cloud to the Eiffel Tower and back in less than 30 minutes (11 km / 6.8 mi). International celebrity soon followed. He was able to do a number of trips over Paris until August 8, 1901, nearly loosing his life after a gas leak, snagging a building, and ensuing spark exploding his hydrogen filled envelope. Apparently this guy, taking full advantage of his fame had a penchant for taking the No. 5 on little trips over town to visit pubs and whatnot.


Germany, LZ-1 (1900)
Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin's pioneering ridged airship. Barely manageable but it was the first successful ridged airship.

From Wikipedia: At its first trial the LZ 1 carried five people, reached an altitude of 410 m (1300 ft) and flew a distance of 3.7 miles (5.95 km) in 17 minutes, but by then the moveable weight had jammed and one of the engines had failed: the wind then forced an emergency landing. After repairs and alterations the ship flew two more times, on 17 and 24 October, showing its potential by beating the speed record then held by the French Army airship, La France of 6 metres per second (22 km/h), but this did not convince the possible investors. Because funding was exhausted, Graf von Zeppelin had to dismantle the airship, sell the scrap and tools and liquidate the company.

More to come.

[emperor_andreas]

Very nice work!

[odysseus1980]

Nice thread! Always like airships since child!

[Hood]

Excellent work on these pioneering airships.

[eswube]

Fantastic!

[DG_Alpha]

Nice one, looking forward to more!

[David Latuch]

Does anyone have a French navy captive kite balloon:?:

I need one for the French battleship Bretagne (1919-20)

[ezgo394]

Craig, I have done the U-class Zeppelin. The image was not showing because Majhost went down several months ago. I have updated it with Dropbox.
I was planning on doing the S-class as well, but if you like you can draw it.