What if the Hindenburg Disaster Never Happened?

[@SynGirl32]

Fun fact: The only US airship loss in WW2 occurred when a blimp tried to sink a U-Boat off the coast of Florida. The U-Boat had more guns and easily shot down the blimp, but everyone on board survived and tread the warm waters awaiting rescue. Then right before a ship arrived for them, one of the crew members was eaten by a shark.

[@CoalCreekCroft]

KZ-74 off the Florida straights, July of 1943. Odd place for only one lost to enemy combat. Thanks for tugging my memory to check out the many other wild details of that incident, including sailors on the recovery ships trying to fight off the sharks with small arms fire. Blimp just settled down easy on the water; some crew riding the still-inflated parts like a raft (engine was hit/exploded which brought her down). And while they didn't sink the sub, the charges they DID drop on it were enough to cripple it. British Navy found it as it was limping back and sent it to the bottom.

[@kaanpleb]

The extremly Low Chances of a shark attack, u-boat attack AND being in an airship are enough but ALL AT ONCE? The odds, eh?

[@sizanogreen9900]

So this proves it. Sharks are more dangerous than airship crashes. Science.

[@Thecodytree]

⁠@@sizanogreen9900and since vending machines are more dangerous than sharks, they must also be much more dangerous than airship crashes!

[@alexanderivankovic8966]

Poor guy

[@mmcb2910]

I love how hard cody tries to avoid the obvious and inevitable conclusion: "What if the Hindenburg never exploded?" "The disappearance of the airship would be less memorable."

[@joedingo7022]

Yep, that's about what it boils down to, without helium being mass-producible airships were always doomed to fail (or, the usual steampunk "explanation" of a method of making hydrogen not explosive, but no, science says no)

[@Daretobestupider]

Not every 'What if' makes that much of a difference, unfortunately.

[@jhutt8002]

I'd guess Hindenburg is so famous because US news coverage of the disaster. Look up R101. It was similarly largest airship of it's day, and ended up falling in it's maiden voyage causing in many ways even worse disaster, and ending the airships in UK. Yet I only became aware of it 2015 when Iron Maiden made 18 minute song about it.

[@donovanulrich348]

​@@jhutt8002America had just invested heavily into the infrastructure to support the air ships in major metropolitan areas The capital of some states changed literally cuz air ships ended. It wasn't a immediate reaction, but a easier means of transportation to another metropolitan area

[@troodon1096]

@@jhutt8002 Rather ironic, as the Hindenburg wasn't even the worst airship accident. That would be the crash of the USS Akron, that caused the death of 73 people. Hindenburg wasn't the second worst airship accident either... it was the FIFTH worst (and all 4 accidents that beat it in terms of casualties had already happened before the Hindenburg crash). It was just the most public and memorable, and most highly photographed and filmed.

[@rimfire8217]

Airships just look cool. They are a boat in the sky. They set the imagination on fire. That's why they are so popular in Retrofuturism and Alternate History. They are visually cool.

[@alanpennie8013]

Yes indeed. Sad that their utility is so limited. In the 1970s advertising blimps became a thing. A good way to monetise the *cool* factor.

[@mmrw]

They look so weird to me. I see the photos of them and can hardly believe it’s real and that those things were really flying around at one point

[@jacob4920]

Just look in the sky above your average sporting event. Blimps DO have a place in our world. Just not for the important crap. Still doesn't change the fact that I want to one day experience flying in one!

[@Servo_M]

Oh, they set the imagination on Fire alright.

[@miro.georgiev97]

One must never underestimate the "Rule of Cool.™️" 😎

[@quacker2212]

One thing that most people overlook is that the majority of people on board the Hindenburg survived. Since the descent was so slow, most of the passengers were able to escape the burning wreckage as it hit the ground.

[@planetdrull1701]

And the few passengers that did jump off in panic didn’t survive the fall

[@MathMasterism]

About 1/3 of the passengers and crew were fatalities according to Wikipedia. So technically a minority, but still significant enough to make me hesitate to say "most" survived.

[@smalltime0]

the actual deadliest disaster was a US rigid airship filled with helium - the USS Akron. 73 out of 76 people died

[@Rachl1284]

@@MathMasterismfr

[@xxxdumbwordstupidnumberxxx4844]

@@MathMasterism it is most by definition, but yeah, it's not great

[@timmccarthy9917]

The Japanese DID use unmanned incendiary balloon bombs in WWII. Sent them across the Pacific to try to start forest fires in Oregon and California. Failed, but killed a handful of civilians in one incident.

[@theshlauf]

Was hoping he'd mention that one.

[@Yostuba]

The brits used them far far more and they were effective from what I recall. They also tied wire with weights to another type of balloon to pull powerlines or some retarded shit. Plus the whole fact of ballons being used for spying for like decades. They're cheap simple and work, they fly high and stay "hidden". Unless its a massive massive Chinese one which was tracked for ages and no one cared about because they knew what it was doing right away. And could have popped it before it even reached the coast. But that would A let China know more about our tech B let them think they're cuckthetic passive aggressive threats matter and C cause the media to talk about this blow it up and make it seem like something important even tho this happens all the time. Since we live in the time of social media no fucking shit someone would noticed the balloon and post about it. Thus the government had to figure out how to play this while not making themselves look bad or making China mad and sad because it was just a poor old weather balloon think of the Chinese peoples feelings shooting down their poor weather balloon with fighter jews China did nothing wrong China is never violating air space and ocean treaties with other countries China totally obeys global laws&regs. God that whole ordeal was so fucking retarded they should have said it was a massive threat China was using it to spy and release covid blast it down and get the world to place heavy embargoes on China for this. And all the BS they are pulling in the south "Chinese" sea claiming the own everything wiping out fisheries attacking every country around them in said countries own waters bullying everyone. Totally isn't going to mak everyone side with Amerca and start screechig how we need to cluster nuke the mainlander and wipe out the CCP ASAP due to them constantally attacking ships in their own waters for the past few years creating fake islands(which are sinking because China cant build anything) claiming they are Chinese islands that have always been their poisoning the water and getting fishing boats to suck the sea dry so no one else can fish and is forced to buy from China. As they come closer and closer to our waters illegally fishing and harming our fishery numbers, as we for whatever reason are not shooting down and detaining illegal Chinese fishing ships violating international law. Because that would hurt the Chinese peoples feelings China is ruining the ocean China isnt illegally fishing the west did it for ages the west totally constantally attacked other nations fishing boats created fake islands and poisoned seas/oceans killing everything while also planting illegal listening bouy's to spy on subs/boats/tap into under sea cables. /autstic rant

[@CoalCreekCroft]

Two kids, their mother and maybe someone else there in one incident if memory cells work right. Simply out camping; kids find something strange; let's go see ...

[@TheWizardGamez]

How did japans balloon bombs impact the US mission to strategically bomb them

[@leogazebo5290]

Also fun fact a japanese balloon also hit an electrical grid which cause delays in the Manhattan, unintentionally.

[@lacelessshoes2413]

My mom was doing public relations for an elder care non profit, and actually got to meet a man who witnessed it. He was in grade school at the time, and Hindenburg’s visit was during school hours, but his teacher wanted his students to see the technological marvel, and took them out of class to the airfield saying “today you’re going to witness history.” I guess even if the teacher didn’t know it, he was even more right than he originally thought.

[@vexywexypoo]

The teacher did it

[@enoughothis]

Airships have style that modern jetliners can never match.

[@ASlickNamedPimpback]

honestly, the style is fire

[@Richard.Vox.]

Airships are hot, and then they aren't

[@enoughothis]

@@Richard.Vox., true but statically speaking the Hidenburg had a higher survival ratio then the Titanic.

[@PurpleNugget64]

They’d be an interesting experience but there’s a weight limit to them so most material in the passengers areas were made of light flimsy material and wasn’t good for sound prove lol

[@QuantumAscension1]

Them planes just can't handle the thicc-ness an airship has

[@slikespitfire4751]

I love how so many alternate history scenarios that are made to try to made a certain thing more prominent can end up doing the opposite

[@Aravaganthus]

Aluminium was so rare that when Emperor Napoleon III wanted to really flex on guests he busted out the aluminium cutlery rather than the silver

[@rtpoe]

And the very tippy-top of the Washington Monument is a little pyramid of aluminum...

[@jaredthehawk3870]

And many of the medallions made for George Washington's funeral were made of aluminum

[@Ploxtifs_OldAndDeadAccountXD]

@@rtpoealso that only a few years after completion, the means to effectively and efficiently produce aluminum was discovered/invented, completely crashing the value of aluminum.

[@thesenate1844]

Its funny because aluminium is actually extremely common, it just wasn't until recently that we had an efficient way to refine its ore

[@MrDj232]

It's nice knowing an aluminum soda can could make Napoleon feel small.

[@Ma-mj5rk]

As a man with airship autism, this is the best video you've ever made. Imho. Scratches that itch perfectly.

[@JMdJ2001]

I didn't know the word for this itch of mine as well until you said what perfectly encapsulates my fascination for airships.

[@MrAlsachti]

I love how you take a common alternate history subject, show that the alternate scenario lesser authors would have think of couldn't work, and manage to propose another scenario, original, more realistic, and fascinating at the same time. I wish alternate history novels and movies were of the same quality.

[@chimera9818]

Yeah it would probably stabilize to be something like flying cruise ship (especially after commercial flights tech would become cheap enough around the 60’s)

[@JimMilton-ej6zi]

I love the realistic part, in other alternate history stuff they would've likely said that the hindenberg not happening would've caused zepplins to take over planes in popularity when that just really isn't the case

[@vardiganxpl1698]

Yeah. most althistory stuff in the mainstream are kind of boring or done to death. Like "What if the Nazis won"

[@brunograndis7]

Holy shit, someone not from either Brazil or France mentioning Santos Dumont in a non-condescending way? Kudos, good sir.

[@_fontoura]

He could mention Bartholomeu de Gusmão too, the creator of the balloons through "Passarola"...

[@herknorth8691]

The book that the movie "Die Hard" is based on is called "Nothing Lasts Forever". It takes place in the 1970's and at one point the protagonist, Leland, thinks back to a conversation with a fellow airplane passenger who claims that his favorite way to cross the Atlantic in all his life was by airship, floating just a few hundred feet over the surface of the ocean. I've always thought about that ever since, and wondered what that would be like.

[@Pellagrah]

Just imagine the cinematic possibilities. "I'm tired of these motherfuckin' snakes on this motherfuckin' LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin!" just rolls right off the tongue.

[@TerrellThomas1971]

Do a what if Adolf Hitler didn't get introduced into politics

[@Edax_Royeaux]

@@Pellagrah Graf Zeppelin was the name of the ship, that's like saying "I'm tired of these motherfuckin' snakes on this motherfuckin' Clipper Maid of the Seas". And yes, that was the name of an airliner.

[@RandallBesch]

@@TerrellThomas1971 what if Hitler moves to the USA and becomes a comic book artist? Read "Iron Dream"

[@M0b1us_118]

I take it that probably the conversation that Leland had with the passenger about crossing the Atlantic morphed into the “make fists with your toes” line in Die Hard?

[@wilsonli5642]

I'm sure that Santos-Dumont would have been a much bigger deal in the hypothetical "airships become popular in the 19th century" world - he made a lot of contributions to airship design - but the Wright Brothers probably would still get to fixed wing flight first. Greg's Planes and Automobiles had a pretty good video explaining why: kzbin.info/www/bejne/e5zTgnR9hs6parMsi=jxskGTF1ygSOlJIw TLDW: the Wright Brothers didn't just copy what everyone else did, they invented a wind tunnel to test airfoil shapes, disproved misconceptions that the European aviation community had, and made breakthroughs in wing design (curved airfoil instead of flat), propeller design (twisted airfoil shape), and control (wing warping, which became obsolete pretty soon but at least established some key principles).

[@LevinQGame]

Can't help but wonder if old man Maxim been able to do more if lighter engines came along sooner.

[@ZACKMAN2007]

​@@LevinQGame as in maxim machine gun maxim?

[@LevinQGame]

@ZACKMAN2007 Yep Old Man and not Percy.

[@mentalcrowbar9434]

Then we'd miss out on "Oh the humanity" and honestly I can't imagine a world without hindenburg jokes

[@gojithecringe]

The world simply wouldn't exist without the Jokes like oh the humanity will be different

[@throwaway7969]

You beat me to it! xD

[@gojithecringe]

@@throwaway7969 theres no competition because i think everyone associates Hildenburg jokes will the disaster, its unavoidable xD

[@peterroberts4415]

Imagine a world without an Archer episode

[@EEEEEEEE]

E‎ ‎ ‎ ‎

[@dantereinhardt6911]

Never expected a Santos Drummond mention. Much love from Brazil.

[@MinoricioSerafim]

Finalmente! Procurei demais ate achar um comentário brasileiro. Muito contente por finalmente Drummond receber as honrarias que ele merece! Proud to be Brazilian!

[@Maldito_Murilito]

me trás muita felicidade

[@kiel_3222]

"Kirov Reporting!" might actually be something that you can hear historically

[@The_whales]

Or “we are being reinforced with an airship”

[@oilersridersbluejays]

“Building. Construction complete. New construction options.”

[@fullmetaltheorist]

The wonderer over the sea fog.

[@shinsenshogun900]

"We're shall we strike! Our Homelands are in peril!"

[@kbattraw]

​@@oilersridersbluejays"Silos needed."

[@davidfuller581]

"Because - again - _it doesn't catch on fire_ " had me rolling

[@Andrzej-d9u]

Oh the humanity, he uploaded twice in like two months! It's a miracle!

[@concept5631]

Hussah!

[@FelidaeEnjoyer]

Late april AND early may?? It's magnificent!

[@FatFerret511]

Gotta be honest; this video is of MUCH higher quality than your last one. Well done, Cody!

[@madisonhasson8981]

In 1863, a private business man developed a dirigible that could travel into the wind. He did several demonstrations and tried to pass it off to expertsto develop, but the Union was not interested. It was reported on in a period newspaper with multiple witnesses attesting to the capabilities of the airship.

[@matthiuskoenig3378]

Solomon Andrews' dirgible if I remember correctly

[@johnlee7164]

"Imagine Washington DC surrounded by balloons" Chinese spy balloon controller: Every night. Every night.

[@burp2019]

the whole scenario he came up with of balloons being used in the us civil war would be funny

[@jasonutty52]

Every time I think of the Hindenburg or zeppelins in general, I only think of Sterling Archer slapping a man attempting to smoke aboard a blimp and uttering his immortal words: "Wanna blow us all to shit, Sherlock?"

[@rickascii]

It was a rigid airship

[@frederickshaibani5655]

"For God's sake, it's not hydrogen, it's HELIUUUUUUUUUUUUUM!"

[@aurorauplinks]

i like that episode, good times.

[@CivilWarMan]

"Yeah, which part of this aren't you getting?" "Well, obviously the core concept, Lana."

[@vacuumdiagram]

@@CivilWarMan Years since I'ce seen it, still reading that in Archer and Lana's(LANA!!!) voices! 🤣😎

[@Dueiso]

I can't belive it. You didn't mention the militarization of "ballons" in "Avatar: The Legend of Korra", even in the first serie "The Leyend of Aang". I think the autors did a great job with the zeppelin evolution.

[@calummacgregor589]

I had a family member who was a WW1 vet who, when he saw the Hindenburg, tried shooting at it with his rifle. He figured the Germans were spying, which... wasn't entirely far off from what I understand.

[@nigeh5326]

And every other nation was spying on every other one too. Just others did it more subtly than using an airship 😊

[@Oxtocoatl13]

Not necessarily espionage so much as PR. The nazis subsidized the Zeppelins heavily so the rich folks travelling on them would sing the praises of the new Germany.

[@vexrich]

so it was his fault 💀🤐

[@concept5631]

What a lad

[@b4rn3yy]

I love how this video’s just as disguise for Cody talking about how cool he finds airships

[@draconianscout]

They were sky cruise liners. You didn't take them to go faster you took them for the slow and amazing process of going across the world from the sky.

[@jacob4920]

I would happily ride upon a zeppelin cruise, over an ocean-based one, if I had the options in front of me!

[@chimera9818]

Yeah they would probably be used for that and probably for inter country travel when you don’t care for the speed much but just need to let’s say: travel from Paris to Lyon and wants something that would be faster than train or car but still wants to enjoy the view

[@thesenate1844]

​@@jacob4920You could fly directly from Europe to America over the Arctic. Boats obviously would struggle, and there is a market for that route

[@Oldass_Deadass_dumbass_channel]

​@@thesenate1844polar vortex: *allow me to introduce myself*

[@draconianscout]

@ApolloApplications the big floating airships were very specifically opulent and advertised as such. You took a stately ride across the ocean or over land and enjoyed the beautiful view out the window.

[@tangydiesel1886]

Dexter Kansas is where helium was discovered. They drilled a well for natural gas, and the gas wouldn't burn. They sent a sample to a university to study why it wouldn't burn and found out it contained helium.

[@conserva-chan2735]

A vid on if the Sino-Soviet split never happened or was patched up in the 70s would be so kino man

[@sergioventura2595]

Sup my man

[@roguetulip]

unintentional Viktor Tsoi jumpscare?

[@Redneck2393]

Or a video on if the Sino-Soviet border conflict escalated to all out war.

[@jamesshone1677]

“Right after they invaded Austria” *shows Italy and Switzerland*

[@acepedro12]

"The US trying to shrink its military" is not a sentence I'd ever expect to hear.

[@mrmr_zoomie]

Yeah… there was a time when America took pride in not preparing for a war until they were in one. How times change.

[@therealgrixly5592]

For the longest time, the United States would reduce its army after wars, dating back to the end of the American Revolution, due to the fears of a tyrannical standing army.

[@gzer0x]

before world war II, lots of americans hated joining the military. the pay and benefits sucked. some judges would offer military service as a punishment instead of jail. Various perceived moral scandals, lack of recruiting budgets, and the belief all enemies could never pass the ocean-- were all issues that plagued the military after the civil war well into the interwar (post wwi era). At the same time, congress chronically underfunded every branch. after the revolution, congress almost cut out the navy entirely. before WWII, every single branch of the military was undermanned below their peacetime readiness goals.

[@homeonegreen9]

​@@mrmr_zoomieWe have done a pretty good job shrinking our military in recent times. The Navy in particular is a war behind as is tradition.

[@jacob4920]

@@mrmr_zoomie And then Pearl Harbor happened, one fateful Sunday...

[@i_barely_hee-know_her]

New Jersey mentioned ‼️ I've eaten gabagool at the Hindenburg disaster site

[@8thFurno]

So that Hindenburg joke was foreshadowing after all…

[@thehotnerd18]

Best video in a while, i love the amount of detail and thought you put into this. Keep up the good work :)

[@joe_hutnak]

We would never have that iconic Led Zeppelin cover.

[@louisduarte8763]

Hell, we might not have had Led Zeppelin AT ALL. I don't want to live in that timeline.

[@andrewgutierrez4841]

And they probably wouldn't've been *called* Led Zeppelin, maybe keeping their original name, *the New Yardbirds.*

[@rdgr]

@@andrewgutierrez4841 That is my thoughts also.

[@SuperSaiyanGuyver]

We'd also probably lose the iconic Icarus cover too. This timeline sucks.

[@PartTimeBuddhist]

This, I believe, is the most consequential aspect of the question that was proposed.

[@StephenLynx8492]

My grandfather served on a blimp in the US Navy. I am in love with this scenario, and it feels like a tribute to him!

[@derrekmitchell1264]

As someone who has done extensive research on airships, I just want to point out some other factors and potential possibilities for airships in alternate timelines. 1. The rival to Zeppelin company, Schutte-lanz, had made rigids with wood (plywood specifically), so there's a possibility for rigid airships being developed earlier. 2. In WWI, the Germans had managed to build a zeppelin capable of bombing New York city, but hadn't been able todeploy it for that mission. Such an event could have motivated a greater interest in them with an earlier development of intercontinental bombing coming into being. 3. The US had developed the Akron class airship, a scout craft that was a flying aircraft carrier, and planned on making a flying aircraft carrier for offensive use, the ZRCV. Would such craft have been of use or made a difference in WWII? One of the last major airship advocates, Charles E. Rosendahl, suggested in one of his books that if they were around, having (apparently) a better ability to act as fleet scouts than surface ships, he believed Pearl Harbor Might never have happened as the Japanese fleet wouldn't be able to have the element of surprise. 4. More longer range airships being in use by other nations like Britain and the US in WWII could have had an affect on the Battle of the Atlantic. One thing U-boats were absolutely terrified of was blimps, they were extremely effective against subs. Apparently only one cargo ship had be lost under airship escort over the course of both world wars, so if, say aircraft carrying rigids were in use with greater range and better ability to deploy more depth charges and bombs, the U-boat threat would have been far less of a factor. 5. Helium being found in the US in a timeline airships where of greater use would have motivated other nations to find other sources. Qatar is currently the second largest producer of helium today, and was part of the British Empire by 1914, followed by Algeria, a French colony. And surveys found there are potentially massive sources of helium in areas of China and Siberia. Those could affect things in airship development in those areas as well. Just wanted to add that.

[@goldenfiberwheat238]

0:30 average Boeing flight

[@killblade6]

What i wanted to see: balloon advancement to the point where final fantasy airships became a thing What i got from the video: probably the Crimson Skies game timeline

[@alexdoublell7804]

I remember hearing in another video that, in the slim chance the airship survived past the 30's, they could have had massive potential for moving cargo. Sort of like a hybrid between a cargo ship and plane. They couldn't carry as much as a cargo ship, but they could still carry quite a bit and were faster.

[@jessepazdera6664]

In the third book of the Pendragon series, The Never War, there's an alternate timeline in which there were spies onboard the Hindenburg, and its survival allows the Nazis to develop the atomic bomb first and win World War II. The main character actually goes on to cause the Hindenburg disaster by shooting it down with a rocket.

[@concept5631]

That, uh, sure is something.

[@santiagoperez3024]

I… don’t think that’s how Nuclear weapons work, but that’s pretty funny “Oh Hans, something seems wrong on zhe Airschip” “Hmm? Oh, pressure ist off” (Flips switch) “Done” “Good, now to- vhat is zhat?” “Vhat ist vha-“ *BOOOOOOM*

[@skittybug6937]

It's worth noting that the plan involved a lot of Nazi gold and the Mob with a Nazi contact, but yea when I first read that book my brain basically just short circuited with how silly the scenario was. And apparently they never ended up rebuilding the eastern seaboard after thousands of years in that timeline which is bizzare and stupid.

[@aurorauplinks]

@@santiagoperez3024 I think he meant the spies on the hindenburg were able to steal secrets from the manhatten project at the last second and change events.

[@iammaxhailme]

Glad to see someone else in the comments has read it! My favorite one in the series

[@Salamander_Space_Marine]

I just need to say how much you've inspired me Alt, I love your videos and they even inspired me to start my own alternate history channel

[@TheHero136]

Alternate History Hub you never cease to disappoint me. Just when I start to worry that the content is gonna start to become a bit predictable you find a way to peak my interest. Btw, a great topic of interest for you to consider. What if Apartheid South Africa never fell?

[@concept5631]

Impossible. Apartheid SA, or just South Africa, would've fell eventually. Nelson Mandela only delayed the inevitable.

[@amberhernandez]

"You never cease to disappoint me" is meeean lol

[@concept5631]

@@amberhernandez Maybe they meant "amaze" or?

[@100lovenana]

"never cease to disappoint me", then you say you enjoy how he peaks your interest? I think you got stuff mixed up in your comment

[@thegreatstapley]

The Airborne series by Kenneth Oppel is kinda in this vein. A very fun alt history esque novel series that kinda deals with a world without Zeppelin disasters, including air pirates, and a space race. Tonsvof nostalgia.

[@RedOblivion7]

Honestly, all the things you mentioned about anti-aircraft technology might have pushed back the development of airplanes by decades, maybe not even having jet aircraft for decades after. Could you imagine a world without the oppressive nature of modern aircraft or at least a lesser form of it?

[@CassandraPantaristi]

9/11 probably wouldn't have happened.

[@Emane899]

Wouldn't that affect ww2 quite a bit?

[@GrafEisen1]

Being an airplane pilot in WWI was already ridiculously deadly, there's some horrific statistics for them. The presence of serious AA capabilities might have made airplane use in combat straight up impossible.

[@DeltaDemon1]

If the Hindenberg disaster did not happen, we wouldn't have one of the best WKRP bits and that just too horrific to contemplate.

[@benjaminmontenegro3423]

Imagine how awesome it’d be to go visit any big city in the 21st century and see gigantic floating ships in the sky jumping from city to city, country to country just like modern airplanes do.

[@Shinzon23]

Reminds me of the other world in Fringe.

[@mikeblatzheim2797]

Around Cologne there are regular Zeppelin flights, and it's incredibly awesome to see from the ground.

[@Isometrix116]

While I am no Archimedes, I feel like a wooden rigid airship using a series of balloons that partially used the rising air to turn a shaft which could be used like a windmill propeller seems doable for the time. If you want bonus points, you could have the heat source also boil water, which does the same thing but is then captured and precipitated back down into the original pot it was in. Im not sure about weight or power because I didn't do the math, but it _seems_ realistic using 1800s technology

[@vylbird8014]

It would be... towards the end of the 1800s, once Otto publishes his design for a new type of engine.

[@MBasu-km8by]

It would have brought Kaiserin Viktoria Luise into power in Germany, right? ...right?

[@Blueharvester1983]

Holy Roman Empire, here we come

[@rebeccawinter472]

It’s kinda click bait - inasmuch as the question. Is dismissed outright - but then a way more interesting scenario, one you probably wouldn’t have clicked on, is presented. Thats the genius of this channel.

[@Neville8787]

8:42 I immediately thought of the balloon troop from clash of clans.

[@AleksandrPodyachev]

The thing is that because of the square-cube law, you could make a really big airship that is lifed by the slightly hotter air inside, think a little bigger than a modern cruise ship

[@7lllll]

you touched on the effectiveness of planes because of unpreparedness. the faster development of countermeasures to planes would have a big impact on especially world war 2. i wish you talked more about this

[@smalltime0]

the problem with airships wasnt shooting them (they had bi-planes with interrupt gears when the london raids started), its that the hydrogen didn't catch fire as they expected them to. The bullets tore through the canvas bladders (when/if they hit), but didn't cause enough of a leak to down them. Later they'd make delayed incendiary rounds

[@TheTrueAdept]

@@smalltime0 the thing is that the Zeppelin company knew the dangers of hydrogen, so they developed as many safety features as possible in the designs. Square-cubed is less detrimental to rigid and semi-rigid airships than other aircraft. Funnily enough, several new designs are being made for sensor and transport duties, like the NT series from Zeppelin.

[@smalltime0]

@@TheTrueAdept way to miss the point

[@The_Malcontented]

@5:56 "These balloons are useless, and worse than that, they are [shudder] French!"

[@scottstallings5029]

You sure have a FANTASTIC channel!!! THANK YOU! WE❤LOVE ❤️ YOUR INCREDIBLE ❤️ WORK 😊

[@QuantumAscension1]

I did enjoy Crimson Skies back when I was a kid, the whole concept of armored airships and stuff. didn't make much sense, but good fun.

[@JMdJ2001]

It was a cool game. I hope a remaster of it comes into fruition.

[@Saint_Mono]

I read this as "What happened if the Heisenberg Disaster Never Happened" and I thought this was talking about the plane incident in breaking bad

[@michaelfrench3396]

Can't tell you how happy I am that I'm seeing new content from you!

[@Kodeb8]

"There'd still be no real life steampunk airships" My disappointment is immeasurable and my day is ruined.

[@awesomehpt8938]

We’d have the brotherhood of steel riding around in the prydwen

[@Shark_boiiiii]

Ad victoriam

[@Governor-n1x]

🗿

[@davidfeltheim2501]

Imagine watching this video outside an ice cream shop and one of these Zeppelins lands next door, proceeded by several dozen talking dogs a kid and an old man climbing out.

[@FriendlyPhilcoDealer]

Oh hell yea gamers - for me, “what if Zeppelin did not blow up” is the gateway drug to alternate history

[@Xiiki]

“Bro, why is it so dark in this cabin?” **pulls out lighter**

[@xVMouseVx]

Alt 1800s "How do we fight a hoard of hot air balloons?" "How about try to fly with wings like a bird, we'll call it the 'airplane?'"

[@erictaylor5462]

Aluminum was so high status that people would sell their sterling silverware for aluminum. Aluminum is even more shiny than silver, but it is a lot lighter. The largest single casting to that date was used as a cap on the Washington Monument. When a much easier process to extract aluminum was discovered the price of aluminum lost 99% of it's value literally over night.

[@vylbird8014]

It happens. The same thing happened for quano and natural rubber. There are ghost towns still slowly decaying that were abandoned because they existed for the sole purpose of gathering a once-scarce resource that was replaced by a synthetic alternative.

[@Nostripe361]

I always thought airships would be cool as luxury ships or possible cargo haulers. Basically anything that doesn’t require speed. Granted this isn’t a great explanation for real life but fun use in fiction

[@highdefinition90s]

It’s on my “I would if I could” kinda things list for sure. Re cargo I always think oh yeah I bet that’s a good eco friendly option but it would require a lot of things coming slower and I can see that going down like a lead balloon for most

[@matthiuskoenig3378]

Cargo is actually a great explanation for airships, they fill a niche similar to trucks, slower but cheaper than planes, faster but more expensive than ships or rail. But with the trade off of more expensive production for cheaper operating costs. Airships are -maybe- making a comeback despite the negative image because of cargo. They 100% would have served that role with the unfairly negative PR of the hindenburg (even hydrogen airships were actually safer than planes)

[@Tickingclock4]

I searched the whole comment section to find this 👍

[@shironee_2384]

​@@highdefinition90sthe main problem would only be the initial cost. It takes a lot of materials and money, but I think it would be as durable as cargo planes but much more capacity and less fuel to run. But, that initial cost alone might discourage every investors that came across, so maybe it wouldn't happen soon.

[@vacuumdiagram]

@@shironee_2384 Good for emergencies in difficult to reach areas as well. The main issue - both with that and cargo - is ballast.

[@Gelugladius]

I wrote a college paper on why the Hindenburg was just the final nail in the airship's coffin; they were on their way out and dying of their own volition without hydrogen (The USS Akron and USS Macon) to blame well before then. It's kind of amazing to see for how long the writing was on the wall; Jules Verne wrote a whole novella (Robur the Conqueror) about why heavier-than-air vehicles were pretty much destined to supersede balloons in almost every possible category, and he was surprisingly close to the mark. As much as I love the romance and novelty of a vehicle the size of an ocean liner floating overhead - silently and serenely - like something out of a dream, a novelty is all that it's really meant to be. The convenience of extra leg room and a stunning view of the world below is outdone by the convenience of arriving at your destination the same day and the safety of being able to power through a light headwind. While I think that there are certain roles for which lighter-than-air vehicles exceed their heavier cousins, those roles are so narrow that they'll never dominate the sky like they once did.

[@anthonyminimum]

Fun Fact: The United States actually DID invest in their own hot air balloon, it was the first manned balloon flight in America, it took place on January 9, 1793 in Philadelphia with George Washington as a whiteness. The ballon flight was manned by a Frenchmen named Jean-Pierre Blanchard and the balloon landed in a remote field in Gloucester County, New Jersey, which is today behind a Super Walmart in Deptford Township, New Jersey. Which is the origin of why Deptford has a hot air balloon as their Township seal.

[@PeacefulZealot]

Can I just say I am so happy you chose Chester A. Arthur for your head of state picture?

[@fireironthesecond2909]

“What if Cody from AlternateHistoryHub got some maidens?”

[@pierreyboi]

I'm pretty sure the same Cody from Pointlesshub said he has a wife

[@spaceemperorspar4791]

@@pierreyboiand a kid

[@ابراهيمحسينتاريخ]

Hello, I am Ibrahim from the Kingdom of Jordan. I love your content and I have an idea for a video. What if the Fourth Crusade was launched against Egypt?

[@lawlessoffice5103]

watched in 100x speed, a true alternatehistoryhub classic

[@Amesang]

*Brisco County, Jr.* _"Well, professor… where're you headed?"_ *Professor Wickwire:* _"Well I've got an appointment with a group of German investors… some count named Von Zeppelin."_ *Brisco County, Jr.* _"Well, don't give away too much!"_ *Professor Wickwire:* _"Oh, no no! All he wants is to have it named after him and some metal armaments for combat."_ *Brisco County, Jr.* _"Ha! Very fancy. A 'lead Zeppelin!' Might just be your stairway to Heaven!"_ *Professor Wickwire:* _"Heh, yes indeed! If I sell him just one airship… it'll be a good year!"_

[@danielsantiagourtado3430]

Love your content! Thanks For this ❤❤❤

[@Ploxtifs_OldAndDeadAccountXD]

5:28 Ben Franklin predicted the Balloon troops from Clash of Clans.

[@CivilWarMan]

"What if the Hindenburg Disaster never happened?" Hearts Of Iron 4 Players: "Obviously it would lead to the refounding of the Holy Roman Empire under Kaiserin Victoria."

[@misterabbadon977]

My first experience with Alternate history was a young adult novel involving time travelers* averting the hiddenburg disaster. It leads to the Nazis getting the nuke and World War II ends in an all out nuclear exchange. *kind of its complicated.

[@theworstchannelyouhaveever9573]

Try doing what if Buddy Holly Ritchie Valens and The Big Booper didn't die in 1959?

[@BigBeakEntertainment]

Considering the Confederacy was able to pull off stuff like the H.L. Hunley and the CSS Virginia, I could see them trying to innovate an airship to try to run the Union blockade.

[@mathieuleader8601]

Airships always remind me of Hector's airship from A Series of Unfortunate Events

[@DarthGTB]

Nice seeing you mentioning Santos-Dumont. Here in Brazil we consider him being the first because his plane could propel itself out of the ground and had flaps and whatnot like modern planes have. I think the Wright brothers' plane had to twist the wings or something like that although ingenious, wasn't very practical and required a catapult (or wind) to lift off. All things considered, it was an involuntary joint operation to make aviation available for us. Many others were also making them in France, Germany and other places. I don't care about the nit-picking, I do care that you mentioned him. Thanks!

[@ozzy6852]

The Wright flyer didn't require a catapult or a head wind to lift off the ground anymore than modern aircraft do, it just shortened distance they needed for the take off run (very important considering there wasn't any run ways at Kitty Hawk). Also why would Santos-Dumont be considered the first? The Wright brother's first flights predated him by almost a whole three years and had far more success in basically every metric of those flights, (mainly distance, altitude, and controllability). And even if you discount the 1903 flights, the Brothers flew the third version of their Wright Flyer 39 kilometers in 1905 (with witnesses), almost a year before Dumont's first flight.

[@zetablackstar2410]

Dumont didn't even have the first flaps. That was Robert Esnault-Pelterie.

[@DarthGTB]

@@zetablackstar2410 I didn't say he had the first flaps. I said his plane had flaps. There were even other planes before both Santos-Dumont and Wright brothers. But Wright brothers and Santos-Dumont were the first to succeed with a functioning plane

[@DarthGTB]

@@ozzy6852 it's just Brazilians being Brazilians... Give us a discount. I don't really care who did it first. I personally consider their flight as the first one because it literally was... Brazilians were too attached to the semantics of what a plane is instead of what a flight is.

[@ozzy6852]

@@DarthGTB That’s fair

[@Kemot300]

What if the Hindenburg was instead named after a certain “Toothbrush mustache having Austrian man” who in 1945 wanted to "checked if his skull was bullet proof"?

[@TREBORisME]

History Matters reference.

[@Roach18]

That also had a certain Fez-wearing Italian Man as an ally?

[@vylbird8014]

You only get things named after you if you win. Paul von Hindenburg was a highly capable commander during WW1, and even though his country did lose that war it wasn't for lack of achievements on his part. Even after Germany lost he was still remembered as a patriotic hero - plus he sort-of supported the Nazis (if only out of expediency), which made him influential enough to get such public recognition as an entire line of airships named after him. Shitler, on the other hand, was a moron who thought 'lets invade Russia in winter' and 'America is all the way over there, they can't hurt me.' He lost his war so hard, what was left of Germany was carved up and turn into puppet states. No-one is naming things after him. Still, he did succeed in his dream of a unified Europe. Everyone else unified against him.

[@smalltime0]

@@vylbird8014 Hitler invaded Russia in late June...

[@vylbird8014]

@@smalltime0 And was still invading Russia six months later. If you invade Russia you have a very brief window before the weather turns.

[@rwboa22]

Imagine marrying the Gatling Gun of the US Cavalry in the Wild West with the airship (the A-10 Warthog of its time).

[@jipsplayer1896]

I have a feeling you make your videos after having a fever dream

[@HaonProductions]

The Hot Air Balloon warfare bit had me practically dying of laughter... and also gave me a weird urge to replay Bioshock Infinite

[@cyberfutur5000]

I'm sad that we don't live in the timeline where Napoleon send 10000 solideres in 5000 hot air balloons over the channel.

[@DjVortex-w]

The Hindenburg disaster is quite notable in that from all 97 people on board there were only 35 fatalities. It certainly doesn't look like it from the footage.

[@arkhamfivehundred]

*"We are being reinforced with an airship."*

[@abravenewclockworkorange.7875]

21:24 "The airshipps are approaching! We're all going to die!!!" "No, nothing ever happens."

[@madisonhasson8981]

Schuette Lanz made about a dozen rigid airships using wooden frames.

[@madisonhasson8981]

Thus, it is possible that rigid airships could have been made earlier.

[@multiyapples]

I wasn’t expecting this. I could see this happening in a parallel universe.

[@roberth8254]

My man is forgetting grapeshot lol

[@fawfulfan]

Fun fact regarding how rare aluminum used to be in the 18th and 19th centuries: the Washington Monument was capped with aluminum when it was completed in the 1850s, primarily as a flex of America's wealth and prosperity.

[@ReadytoDiveIn]

How about? What if the Good Friday agreement was never signed?

[@thecyberneticphoenix7040]

1:20 " ….right after they invaded Austria." Accidently shows a map of Switzerland instead.

[@GhostCryProductions]

I studied the Hidenburg for a history class. Based on the evidence I collected from available data, I concluded that the most likely cause of the fire was maintenance failure and the crew were too proud to admit making a mistake.

[@Free_filistine]

It's great to see you upload 👍

[@rushabhbhakta7181]

Nothing ever happens, now with more balloons

[@martinsto8190]

i agree with everything Cody has on the use of zeppelins during war, but there is one application that is not mentioned cause this video only briefly covered their role in ww2. 1:34 in our timeline, the Kriegsmarine executed secret missions that involved establishing weather stations on isolated Canadian territory, which needed submarines to go across the north atlantic to obtain information about the weather conditions. if in a timeline where there was more pointless investment for creating the grafzeppelin2, and then finding that they would be vulnerable to allied aircraft attacks from 1942 onward. i'd think they would try moving some, then eventually stationing all zeppelins to Norway, where they can be launched from arctic circle tp fly over the frozen wilderness, to either head across the arctic ocean to drop off equipment for the kriegsmarine or just float around for a few days as a mobile weather station.

[@davibrelazdealbuquerque5766]

20:04 - Your acknowledging our boy Santos Dumont, gave me a smile 🇧🇷😅 (Also, if you can, make more wacky scenarios involving South American countries)