The Hindenburg Disaster: The End of the Airships

[@MMSMLUNWINPP]

I can always count on Simon and crew for entertainment, education, and, oddly enough, company. No matter which channel you post on, It's always very much appreciated. Thank you all so much, you help alot of people in ways you may not realize. Keep up the good work!!!

[@Inyourbox-kr5uf]

Professional glazer

[@brandonladd149]

We’re gonna look back on our lives someday and realize what an important part of it Simon has been.

[@MMSMLUNWINPP]

@brandonladd149 I completely agree. I can honestly say looking over the past year of my life (I found Simon and his channels fairly recently in regards to how long he's been doing this), these videos have been an important part of my journey. I've learned alot about the world, history, science, and about human nature. I also found a channel that I could listen to for the long periods when I'm alone, that not only entertains me, but makes me feel less lonely. For that, I am extremely appreciative. I hope Simon and the writers and all the staff, know how much they are appreciated and how important they are to some people. Thank you all again.

[@Inyourbox-kr5uf]

@@MMSMLUNWINPP so much glaze bro works at Krispy Kreme

[@duncancurtis5108]

Oh the humanity!

[@ald1144]

My 5th grade science teacher was a small boy in Boston and saw the Hindenburg pass overhead on its final flight. It left him with a fascination with zeppelins that he brought to his science lessons, to the point of having a cardboard model of the Graf Zeppelin hanging in the classroom. He also had a framed 1-inch square patch of hull fabric from it. Coolest teacher I ever had.

[@VisibilityFoggy]

This was a great video. In my job in media covering defense projects, I got to enter what is now known as Lakehurst Naval Air Engineering Station (the Zeppelin base where the disaster occurred). The hangar is STILL not only standing, but is used for aerostat and sensor testing for modern warfare. A small mark on the concrete (with plenty of grass growing in between the old pavers) has a tiny flag sticking out of the ground, signifying exactly where the center of the Hindenburg crashed. I also had the privilege to take a ride in the modern MZ-3A U.S. military airship that was supported by the exact same facility. Wish we could post photos here, because I have a million of them!

[@dabking94.19]

Your lucky! As a self educated Airship historian I would love to visit NAS Lakehurst! Hanger one housed every U.S Navy Blimp ever produced from the 1920's - 1960's, The Graf Zeppelin, Hindenburg (twice in 1936), as well as every U.S Navy Zeppelin ever made. Starting with the ZR-1 USS Shenandoah, ZR-3 USS Los Angeles (German built LZ-126) , ZRS-4 USS Akron, and ZRS-5 USS Macon. Also housed the one and only metal clad Blimp the ZMC-2. That marker where the Hindenburg went down..back in 1937 that entire area was grass and sand. Not concrete like it is now.

[@SandrA-hr5zk]

I spent the summer at NASA Ames facility at the old Moffett Field in San Jose, CA. Hanger 1 is going through a major renovation and I watched the progress of new cladding going up. The sad part is, half the base is now owned by Google and the air strip is primarily used for private executive jets, including all three of the hangers.

[@dorsk84]

Two things come to mind when I see an Airship.... 1. No ticket! 2. The game Crimson Skies. That was such a fun game.

[@frydenland]

3. You are SO wrong. 4. KIROV REPORTING.

[@reidbronson6358]

Such a sad story. I was born a few hundred meters from the crash site. Dad was a Chief Petty Officer stationed at Lakehurst NAS, working for Sikorski and Piasecki, the fathers of the American Helicopter Industry. Dad ended up being certified: "US Navy Helicopter Mechanic #1." A family treasure is a photo of Dad with Sikorsky and Piasecki. What a great Dad.

[@daytwaqua]

Any time an airship is mentioned now, I immediately think of the "Skytanic" episode from the first season of Archer.

[@travisinthetrunk]

M as in mancy. Lol

[@_RiseAgainst]

Some broad gets on with a staticy sweater and it's O THE HUMANITY!

[@_RiseAgainst]

Some broad gets on with a staticy sweater and it's "O THE HUMANITY".

[@SomeRPGFan]

I think of the first episode of the show Timeless.

[@aidanholland4877]

The KZbin algorithm must be reading my brain for this to be the first comment. *Cough* rigid airship

[@RoryCJames]

An old story brilliantly retold with a narrative, at times worthy of an award. Fabulous and thank you.

[@Jayjay-qe6um]

The site of the Hindenburg crash is at the Lakehurst Naval entity of Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst. It is marked with a chain-outlined pad and bronze plaque where the airship's gondola landed. It was dedicated on May 6, 1987, the 50th anniversary of the disaster. Hangar No. 1, which still stands, is where the airship was to be housed after landing. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1968. Pre-registered tours are held through the Navy Lakehurst Historical Society.

[@wookie-zh7go]

Giant, burnt out really fast, and full of hot air. He was bang on, it was a perfect ambassador. 😂😂

[@bsadewitz]

Lol

[@joshuaj.weaveresq.5719]

It was not completely ego that it was called "Zeppelin." While all zeppelins are airships, not all airships are zeppelins. In other words, zeppelin was also identifying the type of airship. For example, blimps are another type of airships, which may outwardly appear similar. While both are self propelled with lighter-than-air gas and are steered by pilots, their structures are different. Zeppelins are "rigid" airships that use an "internal framework" to maintain their shape. Blimps are "nonrigid" airships that rely on internal air pressure to maintain their shape (just like a balloon).

[@middlingmodeler]

In point of fact Hugo Eckener was granted authorization to use helium for the airship in 1929 despite the ban. Ultimately it was money that kept them from using heiium as they didn't have the facilites to use or store it, and didn't have the budget to build them.

[@smalltime0]

Not really, I mean yes it was ultimately money... But actually deflating and refilling the damn things was an issue. Helium escapes basically everything (including glass incidentally), sure hydrogen does too but nobody cares because you can just make more. The US had the worlds supply, and even their storage wasn't particularly large. The ZR-1 (Shenandoah) alone basically used the entire storage to inflate, luckily it didn't last long enough to require much maintenance

[@matthewternullo3064]

You're awesome Simon! Keep it up!

[@jc6800]

Simon's a beast 💪 😎 👌 😤

[@Dreamfox-df6bg]

Thank you. Far too often people forget the detail that it was build to use helium and was only adapted to hydrogen after helium was not available.

[@richardrichard5409]

No, they did get permission to use He, but cost and availability issues meant the use of H2😎

[@EmilyJelassi]

Very interesting video!! I love that I can always count on not only learning something from any of your many channels but also entertained. Thank you Simon and teams!! 😊❤❤

[@jonathonspears7736]

Knowing the risks. I would still board an airship to this day. There is nothing in the world like these massive airships. They are so cool and awe inspiring.

[@JPF1077]

I feel like this is the 3rd or 4th video Simon has had that at least partially included the Hindenburg but I'll watch it anyway.

[@ignitionfrn2223]

1:20 - Chapter 1 - Conception & construction 7:35 - Chapter 2 - The hindeburg in its glory 13:35 - Chapter 3 - Good and evil 18:30 - Chapter 4 - The fall of the hindeburg

[@MikeBaxterABC]

The Hindenburg featured the very first piano ever to be carried on-board any passenger aircraft Because of weight restrictions the Grand Piano was constructed of the same "Duralumin" as the ship itself! With some parts being made off hollow Duralumin tubing, rather than traditional Cast Iron and hardwood ... this gave the piano a pleasant and very unique sound.

[@Adiscretefirm]

Confining smoking to one area was probably unheard of at the time

[@SRW_]

And you just kno SOMEONE complained. "What do you mean I can't smoke in my room?!. Get the captain here NOW!"

[@donotis93]

Smoking was restricted in many private venues at the time, and people in the USA and Europe had a greater respect for "house rules" than they do today. If caught smoking outside the smoking lounge on a Zeppelin, one would be confined to the tiny brig for the remainder of the voyage. I suspect that anyone protesting this action would encounter strong resistance from the rest of the passengers.

[@sirclarkmarz]

and they used electric cigarette lighters to avoid open flames.

[@Shackbanshee]

I'm writing a book with airships. Needed this video. Thanks Simon!

[@ThePaleEmperor]

As an airship expert, I enjoyed this video, however, Simon made a few glaring errors in his presentation. LZ-128 was the proposed next ship of the line, essentially a larger LZ-127 - however, I don't believe it progressed past the R&D Phase before being scrapped in favor of a totally new, clean sheet design, which became LZ-129 Hindenburg. Simon refers to it as LZ-128 several times even after mentioned the concept being scrapped, this is a minor error but one nonetheless. When Simon mentioned the US airship disaster, he is referring to the loss of ZRS-4 USS Akron in 1933, however the US Navy had a much earlier disaster, their first rigid airship, ZR-1 USS Shenandoah, encountered a fierce storm while flying over Caldwell, Ohio, which caused the ship to break apart into three section and crash during the pre-dawn hours of September 3, 1925. The USN would also suffer a third rigid airship loss when the ZRS-5 USS Macon crashed into the Pacific on the night of February 12, 1935. Simon also mentioned the ship only had 15 hull rings, which was very confusing, as the hull frame was comprised of a total of 247 main and intermediary hull rings; I couldn't make out if he said 15 MAIN hull rings or not, but if he did, that IS correct. The Smoking Room and Bar on Starboard B-Deck were both fact pressurized behind an Airlock controlled by the Bartender, although this was done more for the piece of mind of the passengers than out of safety and necessity; as if you were to have free Hydrogen leaking into the hull, let alone into the passenger accommodations, you would have much bigger problems to worry about than the non-threat posed by burning cigarettes and cigars. There was a single, electric lighter provided for use in the Smoking Room, which was tethered to the wall by a length of cord. Passengers were required to hand over any matches, lighters or any other flame producing materials to the Stewards prior to being allowed to board the ship. When Simon mentions the planned dual fuel engines, he mentions Hydrogen and Helium being the secondary fuel source; but this is incorrect. I believe he means to refer to LZ-127 Graf Zeppelin, which were built with two sets of gas cells, the upper set was for Hydrogen for lift, the lower set was for Blaugas - which was similar to modern Propane - and the five engines of LZ-127 would be switched from running on gasoline over to running on Blaugas once the ship was out over the ocean. The hypothesis for this experimental set up was to prevent having to constantly valve Hydrogen to account for the lost weight of spent gasoline in the fuel tanks in order to keep the ship in trim. This was proven not to be a successful arrangement, and was abandoned going forward. However, he may also be confusing the Exhaust Water Vapor Recovery Systems used aboard the two American, Goodyear-Zeppelin Corp. built Rigids, ZRS-4 and ZRS-5, which would run the exhaust gasses from the engines through special condensers to rapidly cool the exhaust down, producing water which was automatically pumped back into on board ballast tanks - this was done in order to avoid venting as much precious Helium as possible. LZ-130 Graf Zeppelin was originally to be a Helium ship as well, and her engine gondolas featured a much more advanced and complicated variant of this water vapor recovery system, which even when forced to resort back to Hydrogen for lift gas, still worked exceptionally well at recovering ballast water to prevent Hydrogen venting. As for the disaster itself; the exact details and cause are very well known - as the ship had faced strong storms while over the Atlantic, with high headwinds reducing the speed of the ship by almost half, causing the ship, which was due at Lakehurst at 6 AM, to arrive 12 hours late around 6 PM, but had to circle New York for over an hour, awaiting a storm front to pass at Lakehurst before the ship was finally cleared to land at 7:25 PM. As the ship was due to liftoff on its return flight to Germany that same night at midnight, with a full booking of 75 VIP passengers, all holding special passes to witness the Coronation of King George VI on May 12, the ship made a very rash, and rushed approach to land as soon as possible. On the final approach, the wind changed direction suddenly, blowing the ship off course, this was rapidly corrected, albeit with a very sharp 'S' turn - the strain placed on the hull frame during this turn was too great for one or more of the high tension hull ring bracing cables surrounding Gas Cell V - just in front of the fins - these snapped cable/s then slashed the gas cell, causing a massive leak, which combined with the poorly designed/functioning internal ventilation system, allowed for free Hydrogen to accumulate at the top of the hull. As Simon mentions, this is why the stern of the ship almost immediately drops out of trim, causing massive amounts of ballast water to be dropped to attempt to correct this, in addition to sending men forward to the bow, these efforts were unsuccessful, however none of the crew thought to check for a Hydrogen leak, sadly. Once the dry, bow landing rope had been dropped, and began to be dampened by the light rain that was falling, and in the roughly four and half minutes after the rope hit the ground was enough to fully charge this capacitor and static sparks began to generate all throughout the ship, which was normal as every aircraft is statically charged when it lands - however, because there was a massive quantity of leaking free Hydrogen, freely mixing with the outside air, becoming volatile Oxyhydrogen accumulated at the stern, one or more of these static sparks occurring there instantly ignited the mixture, which triggered the initial detonation, followed by the violent inferno as the rest of the ship burned and crashed. This series of events was later confirmed to be accurate by an experiment conducted in 2021, by CalTech Professor of Chemical Engineering Konstantinos Giapis.

[@mikezappulla4092]

Hey, who cares.

[@tomhenry897]

Didn’t myth busters also proof this

[@ThePaleEmperor]

@@tomhenry897 No. Their claim and experiments were to prove that the hull was painted with rocket fuel and this is what caused the disaster. This is so egregiously false, that NASA themselves stepped in to correct them.

[@dabking94.19]

​@@mikezappulla4092Alot of people. Dont be a douchebag! ​

[@virginiamandias1009]

@@ThePaleEmperor I've been fascinated by the death of the airship concept since childhood and considered myself somewhat knowledgeable, but your post here is extraordinary thank you for sharing!

[@BobTravellin]

I visited the Zeppelin Museum in Friedrichschafen on the shores on Lake Konstanz this summer while visiting family just across the border in Switzerland. Absolutely fascinating place and well worth a visit - covered the Hindenburg extensively with mock-ups of the passenger and crew quarters and sections of that massive hull housing everything. Like it or loathe it, it was an awe inspiring piece of engineering. Good history of airship development there too, right up to the present day blimps and proposed cargo carriers. Thoroughly recommended trip. Great video, too, thanks for sharing.

[@starbomber]

I always forget that this thing was part of the marketing for the 1936 Summer Olympics. That color drawing really highlights the Olympic rings.

[@urgardista]

We could live in a Steampunk World. Plus some of Tesla's ideas. What a different Earth would it be.

[@ZergS4uc3]

did not know anyone survived, usually its just footage and you rightfully assume everyone died based on how insane it looks

[@rupindersinghc]

Nice Video ! ❤

[@subashchandra9557]

You should make a video on the history of ammunition. All the way from Pike and Shot to cannons -> Revolvers -> 9mm -> Machine gun -> The quest for the intermediate cartridge -> The split between 7.62 and 5.56, and the eventual happy medium that they seem to have found with 6.8.

[@charlesachurch7265]

Another fascinating presentation xxx. I am easily led!

[@tsbrownie]

Even in WWI, blimp pilots knew the airship's lifespan was dependent on the quality of engines. The benefit of LTA is that when the engines quit, they don't plummet to the ground, and onboard mechanics would fix the problem and they'd carry on. It was known that planes with reliable engines would move farther, faster, more efficiently. Lindbergh crossed the Atlantic in 1927, the Hindenburg crashed in 1939. They were around for their big lift capability and "cool" factor (the USN used airships to impress those who lived away from their ships in the oceans).

[@dabking94.19]

@@tsbrownie Zeppelin pilots!*

[@virginiamandias1009]

@@tsbrownie the USN was all in on airships until they lost three to turbulence/tropospheric instability with a vast majority of hands and realized, like the rest of the world, that the concept was a safety nightmare in reality because the atmosphere has a regular tendency to be exceedingly unforgiving to that which must be both large and light.

[@tsbrownie]

@virginiamandias1009 That's all true. Even in WWI a blimp pilot whose account I read knew that as engines improved the need for LTA would diminish. He said he wanted to get into planes because that was the future, but he never did.

[@jetsons101]

QUESTION: At 21:19 what part of the Hindenburg is that in the middle of the image???? It looks to new; it looks like a shuttle pod from Star Trek or something like that. Maybe I've been watching too much Star Trek on the DVR..... lol

[@dabking94.19]

That would be one of the 4 DB-602 1100 HP Diesel engines and what's left of it's pod.

[@jetsons101]

@@dabking94.19 I don't know why but it reminded me a shuttle pod of some sort from Star Trek. lol

[@thedesensitizedsympathizer5307]

I still think they should bring these back.

[@shmuckling]

Simon has a video on one of his other channels(Science Unbound) about airships possibly coming back as cargo ships, it even breaks down some of the designs that can be used to make them safer. Veritasium also seems to have I video that I haven't seens(just found it looking for Simon's video).

[@zurielsss]

It’s going to be very difficult to get clearance to fly in US and a European airspace. Cost per ticket is also sky high and hard to sell.

[@HalfBlackSahraoui]

​@@zurielsss we're willing to pay

[@SomeRPGFan]

There was a company that tried to bring the airship back as a cargo vessel and built a gigantic hangar near Berlin. Maybe not surprisingly, the company went bankrupt and the hangar was turned into the indoor holiday resort Tropical Islands.

[@dabking94.19]

@@thedesensitizedsympathizer5307 I agree. Wish I could build one. Mine would be 815-825' long

[@ericthompson3982]

"I know, let's paint the giant bag of hydrogen with the ingredients for thermite!" "Ummm... guys?"

[@smalltime0]

It's not rich enough in iron or aluminium to really qualify as thermite.

[@jwadaow]

Veritasium has a new video on Thermite that will show you how difficult it is to ignite. The aluminium oxide on each granule makes it need a specialised source of ignition. kzbin.info/www/bejne/mYalq2NqgdF_jM0si=zYvO0BpM0-1E44oa

[@smalltime0]

@@jwadaow You just need a spark point high enough to make it burn (magnesium does it and normally whats used), the temperature is high enough to sustain the reaction... but that wasn't rich enough to do that.

[@ericthompson3982]

@@smalltime0 I know, and there would be almost no way for the two components to mix appropriately, but it's kind of a fun hook to the story.

[@tomhenry897]

Close enough

[@sirclarkmarz]

i attended a navy training school in lakehurst NJ . there was a mock up of an aircraft carrier flight deck in one of the old blimp hangers. on the quarter deck there was a display case with artifacts from the hindenburg .

[@DAVE_7342]

It's so crazy to live by, and go through Lakehurst all the time. The township police have a picture of the hindenburg on the patrol cars and there's an engraving on the town sign. Other then that it's just a tiny town around and active air base. Most people don't even know about this history.

[@iansprojects3081]

I wish we had these today because they look like fun and I have wanted to ride on one since I was a little kid

[@Craig-wp3pz]

It did create a 'storm' Simon 🎈🎈 ⛽ 🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥 A huge FIRESTORM! 😮

[@venusfoxx5854]

At 23:00 you can see the outline of someone running out of the burning ship.

[@jaredmn8580]

The Hindenburg disaster colorized footage is insane to watch.

[@ElicBehexan]

My parents were from New Jersey, my older brother and I were actually born there. Neither lived that close to Lakehurst New Jersey, but for whatever reasons, Mom visiting relatives and Dad doing whatever, 16 year old boys do. They did hear the sirens and stuff and wondered what had happened.

[@edwardwong654]

I watched the film Hindenburg on Thanksgiving Day in 1975 and it was a great film although we all knew the ending just like in Titanic. The humanity.

[@PuppetWithPerception]

How many Danny Devito’s was the Hindenburg in length?

[@NavyDood21]

Because I am bored I had to look it up. Seems to be about 166.71 Devitos long.

[@MMSMLUNWINPP]

I tried doing the math myself...Danny Devito is 4 foot 10. So a total of 58 inches. 58/12 gets you about 4.83 feet. 1,000 feet divided by 4.83 is around 207 Danny Ds long. Seems like alot haha

[@niftybass]

Not quite sure; I prefer to measure in units of bananas. 😁

[@MMSMLUNWINPP]

@@niftybass banana for scale?

[@goosenotmaverick1156]

​@@MMSMLUNWINPP what else would it be for... eating? 😂

[@michaelsauls3674]

crazy it wasnt the result of the smoking section, whoever designed that is a genius.

[@technick6418]

Perhaps better suited to 'Sideprojects'-but still relevant to this topic-Simon and crew should do an episode about that time when Count Ferdinand Von Zeppelin lost one of his early airships to....a lunch break. Well, sort of. I won't spoil it here, but it's an interesting story, and the mishap almost put The Count out of the airship business before the technology was even proven.

[@oldstrawhat4193]

Simon, I love the short sleeve shirt and new glasses. Great new look!

[@_RiseAgainst]

The luxury of a cruise ship with the speed of a slightly faster ship.

[@primerye]

Also, a photograph of the disaster is featured on the first Led Zeppelin record, which is cool.

[@ZachBurns-gu9zk]

The real tragedy of the Hindenburg is that the original audio has been lost to time. That announcer was Known for his exceptionally deep voice. But through all the terrible recordings it sounds like it does now

[@BrandonRobbinsAshe-yq8ly]

Great video Simon 😊

[@sadib4782]

can you guys please make a video on the aircraft that the NOAA hurricane hunters use? it looks super interesting and id love to know more about how it works, but it seems like there’s not a lot of videos really going into detail about it.

[@edwinwhitaker5679]

The British also built a number of rigid airships for the Royal Navy just after the First World War. I have an ancestor called Edward Gee who was born at Kensington, London, on the 21st February, 1880, with his parents being Arthur Gee (1852-1903) and Margaretta Marianne Maitland (1851-1907). He changed his surname to Maitland. The UK Hart's Annual Army List of 1908 states he was a Lieutenant in the Essex Regiment which was dated the 26th January, 1902. The UK British Army Lists, 1882-1962, states that in 1912, he was a Captain in the same regiment. The Royal Air Club Aviator Certicate states on the 4th April 1912, he trained to be a pilot on a Maurice Farman biplane at South Farnborough, Hampshire. He attained the rank of Air Commodore and his death was on the 21st August 1921, while on board the airship R38, which broke up due to structural failure above the River Humber near Kingston on Hull. There was only 5 survivors from the 49 crew.

[@soonmeekim930]

I had the Goodyear blimp circle above my car last week. It was so cool!

[@MikeBaxterABC]

9:33 ...Do you know why W.S. Gilbert was frequently drunk on his transatlantic crossings?

[@RaYMannSuperFLY]

What guitar effect/pedal/amp can you use to get the sound used in the theme?

[@Darkkfated]

The fact that the 6-foot-tall "Hindenberg" letters look like they're 4-point font in a Word document really drives the sheer scale of the thing home to me like nothing else, for some odd reason.

[@brandonladd149]

What is that building / courtyard @ 15:50?

[@PurelyCoincidental]

I looked it up, since I was interested, too. The full photo has a handwritten note at the bottom that (translated from German) says, "Nuremberg - Airship 'Hindenburg' over the Zeppelin field"

[@WilliamHaisch]

It is the Zeppelinfeld at the Nazi Party Rally Grounds in Nuremberg, Germany.

[@Nuvendil]

To be specific, it is part of the Nazi Party Rally Ground complex. This is where a lot of those famous rally speeches Hitler gave took place and one of the most recognizable locations where the Cathedral of Light technique was used.

[@GrimFelArt]

Man, I wish zeppelins had remained in a small novelty capacity similar to hot air balloons. Yeah they're not super efficient, there are risks, and they're pretty reliant on good weather. But they're a fun and cool way to have a neat experience you can remember, insofar as it actually goes smoothly. They'd just be super cool to see drifting around too. I like seeing balloons, blimps are kinda cool too. But zeppelins have this *presence* that neither of the others do and I wish they were still around to enjoy

[@PagNSlay]

Great video

[@rayhume1971]

The first video I ever saw in the internet was the Hindenberg disaster. Oh the humanity!.

[@PureBlood0420]

the "incedent" was intentional, so that it allowed them to take that mode of transportation away from the people.. iykyk...

[@variaxi935]

I always think of the Eighth Doctor's companion Charlie when the subject of blimps comes up

[@donovandelaney3171]

They tried to bring back Luxury passenger Zeppelin airships in the 1960's. But nothing happened. Who knows why?

[@paulelverstone8677]

On the upside, Led Zeppelin got some new cover art out of this so, y'know, every cloud...

[@NothingIsKnown00]

I hadn’t considered that the Hindenburg displayed a swastika when she blew up. Changes the event’s cultural implications quite a bit.

[@EricCoop]

Why Goodyear-designed bags? Well, Goodyear and Zeppelin were in a partnership. One of their engineers, Karl Arnstein, saw the writing on the wall in 1930 and emigrated to the States where Jews weren't worried about getting killed. Dr. Arnstein designed USS Akron and USS Macon which, at 785 ft in length, was marginally smaller than LZ-129 and LZ-130. Goodyear helped design and build the Hindenburg.

[@MikeBaxterABC]

I believe as do many, that if NOT for the Hindenburg's forced choice to utilize hydrogen and the subsequent failure and fiire ... Air Ships would be much more prevalent today than they are. AND, the lack of airships of ths size today, is a detriment to society in general ...

[@jamesleatherwood5125]

7:41 yeah. So much so they are considering airships for cargo transport even today! Go, Airlander!

[@nicolashuffman4312]

Not a single word about the greatest rock band the world has ever known?

[@vetterburns1048]

Danke Simon! What a story! Airships as a thang got dead. Much like the defunct Pneumatic Subway systems!?

[@duncancurtis5108]

George C.Scott shouldn't have flicked the timer on the detonator. Kapoom.

[@zsgenericyoutubename]

It sure would be nice to watch your videos on one volume setting. Your volume control reminds me of early stage youtube videos when people didn't have knowledge and experience with video editing. But the incredible high quality of your videos indicates that you DO have the required knowledge and expertise, but choose not to volume control your videos. Trying to listen to what you are saying as your voice trails off at the end of sentences makes the video borderline unwatchable. There are literally sound synthesizers that will make your speech volume the same throughout the video, so viewers don't need to constantly raise and lower the volume when they miss something you said. Sorry for the negativity, but it's a criticism I feel is fair only because you do such high quality work.

[@chrisjeffery9582]

Nice video, though it might've been cool to end it with the upnote that they may be coming back, "the end of the era of airships, at least for a few generations"

[@virginiamandias1009]

The Achilles heel of airships, their abysmal volume to mass ratio by design, is as much of a non-starter with modern alloys as it was back then. The US Navy sailed four helium ships. It decommissioned one and lost the remainder with most hands. If anything, helium only makes this achilles heel worse, per its lessor lifting capacity. No amount of wishful thinking will make this fundamental conceptual flaw go away.

[@chrisjeffery9582]

​@@virginiamandias1009 I did say "May be coming back" and there are multiple projects, some of which have been on Simon's channels, to bring airships back. Airlander 10, Pathfinder 1, Aerosmena, the H2 Clipper, and Flying Whales are literally in active development. BTW, Europeans updated regulations to permit hydrogen as a lifting gas in 2022, so the premise that you cannot use hydrogen and have to use helium from your reply is simply not correct.

[@stevenkalur2561]

As always a very interesting account but in truth a good deal more is now known about what actually happened to the Hindenburg and while the issue of the rush for the Airship to return to Europe is definitely a part of all this it was more a part of the captain Liemann and his haste that caused a sharp turn that likely tore cables and ruptured gas bags

[@onlyalisaawilliams]

Excellent video.. I’ve alway’s been fascinated by the Hindenburg, and it’s doomed last flight . I watched many documentaries , and the conspiracies aren’t far fetched “sabotage” . It make’s since the US would’ve put an end to it.. The most common sense question “were they right to do it?”..

[@TheDopekitty]

LZ 128 huh? Guessing this is a possible source of the band name? I mean the zeppelin part is obvious but i always wondered what the Led was about

[@Markle2k]

You don't know the story? It was a process. Keith Moon and John Entwistle heard the idea for the super group with Page and Beck and said that it was going to go down like a lead balloon. They had to give up the name "New Yardbirds", so there's the impetus. Peter Grant suggested the change in spelling to "Led" so it would not be mispronounced like the verb where the idiom was unknown. Page liked the heavier feel of "Zeppelin" "LZ" is the abbreviation of Luftschiff Zeppelin the german term for a lighter-than-air craft (Luftschiff) with a rigid frame (genericized trademark Zeppelin)

[@pabo8080]

I get the feeling the Hindenburg was sabotaged somehow.

[@HalfBlackSahraoui]

I will explain to you why, in the longer voyages, the passengers who have to see each other face to face get angry with each other, cause people talk, and people get triggered very fast when other people talk, so I think it would be a good idea to have the social design that modern aircrafts have

[@JonDoe-ln6nl]

Two days to cross the ocean? Try Amtrak NY - LA for torture.

[@richierich8555]

George C Scott did it.

[@RedBeerd]

Isn't one of the big things holding back hydrogen vehicles how hard it is to get hydrogen (energy wise it takes quite a bit to separate hydrogen from whatever it's attached to from what I've seen)? How was it so easy to get enough to fill frikkin airships like a hundred years ago???

[@alanhilder1883]

It is easy to get hydrogen, compared to getting helium. Hydrogen is gotten by zapping electricity through water, but carefully keeping the oxygen away from the hydrogen ( something that too many "backyard chemists" don't do ) while the "manufacture" helium you need a star ( or a nuclear fusion reactor ( that hasn't been made to work yet except as a bomb and that isn't easy to get the helium out of ), start with hydrogen )... In those days, coal fired power stations were cheep.

[@Pushing_Pixels]

Helium is really expensive, due to how rare it is on Earth (most of it is underground). Hydrogen is everywhere, so you're mostly just paying for the electricity to break it off other elements. The main thing holding back Hydrogen fuelled vehicles is the heavy and bulky containment needed. The gas needs to be highly compressed to have a useful amount of it in a small space. Due to it being the smallest, lightest element it tends to slowly leak through the walls of standard gas tanks, so the containment has to be thicker and heavier than for most compressed gases. The added weight and bulk offset the energy benefits, making it less efficient than traditional fuels in things like cars, trucks and aircraft, where space and weight matter a lot.

[@701983]

There was already chemical industry that produced hydrogen gas as a byproduct at that time. And the airship didn't need very much of it. 200.000 m³ of hydrogen are only 18 tons. That's the energy equivalent of 60.000 liters of diesel.

[@RedBeerd]

@701983 cool. Cheers to you

[@xKynOx]

I know its morbid but they have it all on film the uncut version is meant to be mental we only get to see the PGF-13 bits

[@logs4708]

Where do they find the historical footage that they use in these vids?

[@jo_clarke1960]

Never realised they had flown so far previously or that anyone had survived. It was always doomed to fail, the plane was there and that march wouldn't have stopped, only being sped up by the Americans one imagines, rather than the tragic loss of life be it's downfall.

[@theswiv]

The thumbnail had me expecting a Jan Hammer soundtrack

[@pandawok301]

Wait, didn’t Fact Boi did a video about this flammable balloon years ago?

[@olovlundstedt507]

Yes, yes he has 🙏🇵🇸

[@joeg5414]

i think he's already done a video on basically everything

[@mushroomGdog77]

wish Airships would make a comeback!

[@BattleofTrenton]

You seriously needed empire of the clouds playing

[@martythemartian99]

Did I miss Simon say that it was painted with thermite? I would love to see an alternate history where it wasn't. There is a chance the disaster would never have happened.

[@DasE30Cuz]

If anyone is interested in more on the history of the zeppelin airships, B Sport has a great little series about them.

[@belltolls1984]

Even India Jones rode on it. I wish that Airships would have caught on and were popular today.

[@oldfrittenfett1276]

Every time I hear "the Hindenburg disaster", I think "Oh, the humanity!"

[@markymark3075]

The 1939 zeppelin mission days before the start of WW2 to monitor UK radar capability deserves a mention.

[@rasta77-x7o]

The Empire State Building was designed with a zeppelin dock.

[@BenLapke]

Plus, it provided great album covers for Led Zeppelin’s first two albums.

[@kain772]

I had to do a Book report on this back In Junior High.

[@jontaedouglas7244]

The writers of avatar having the fire nation design the first in the last air bender universe was just genius

[@denniskrust2137]

There are several companies working on developing zeppelins for commercial use now.

[@Kaltagstar96]

Hearing that the Hugo Eckener wasn't a fan of fascism makes me realise that, if I were him, I would've used the Hindenberg to get out of Germany, it's making one of it's trips to the US or England. I would get off the Zepplin and just 'disappear' and happen to "miss my return voyage back to Germany"

[@joaobaptista8377]

the Picture of the title "the good and evil" was taken in Lisbon, Portugal

[@breadmoth6443]

Oh the humanity!

[@kineuhansen8629]

thats gotta hurt

[@daewootech]

Oh George

[@Taylor-bw4zg]

Fun fact: the game bloons actually uses the hindenburgs explosion for the sfx of the MOAB getting destroyed 😂

[@EmilyJelassi]

I don't understand why they would use hydrogen when they knew how incredibly flammable it is... 🤔

[@tomhenry897]

Must be a Democrat Sanctions against Germany

[@701983]

Because it worked well for many years with LZ 127 "Graf Zeppelin". 1.7 million kilometers without an accident with hydrogen as lifting gas. The risk seemed to be manageable. They wanted to use helium, but they were not able to get it from the US.

[@ryanm7263]

The largest craft to ever fly is the SpaceX Starship + booster

[@drym74]

Not by volume