What Killed Flying Aircraft Carriers?

Flying aircraft carriers are indeed possible! Probably many people are not aware that they existed in the US Navy in the early 1930s. The question is, what happened to them and why was the concept abandoned? The answer is #NotWhatYouThink!
Music:
Valley of the Kings - Hampus Naeselius
Flight Path - Cobby Costa
Flight Towards Destiny - Max Anson
Wake - Lalo Brickman
German Dance - Traditional
Footage source: National Archives
Note: All footage digitally remastered by NWYT

[@jcb5782]

Airships are seriously some of the coolest inventions we humans have ever made. It may not have lasted that long; it may not even have been that useful, but walking around in the sky like you would on an ocean liner is some pretty awesome stuff.

[@fitt4393]

Yes

[@joeluliassi1610]

If they had been used more wisely they would have been very useful. I think the navy wanted the project to fail. Probably would have spotted the Japanese fleet in 1941.

[@forcesightknight]

@@joeluliassi1610 That's a very sad epiphany.

[@abraham2172]

I always thought airships have much more potential than what was exploited.

[@theexam7394]

@@joeluliassi1610 RADAR advancements still would've rendered the reconnaisance purpose of the airships virtually pointless though.

[@laupatual7137]

"People of the commonwealth you have nothing to fear. We are the brotherhood of steel."

[@anonymoushunter9808]

😂😂😂

[@kenetickups6146]

shitty game

[@laupatual7137]

@@kenetickups6146 who

[@kenetickups6146]

@@laupatual7137 Fallout 4

[@laupatual7137]

@@kenetickups6146 cares

[@natedaninja3171]

USAAF: Hey we made these really cool flying aircraft carriers Navy: Give it USAAF: But they fly in the air- Navy: AN AIRCRAFT CARRIER IS AN AIRCRAFT CARRIER

[@johnkieth4537]

***Insert Incredibles 2 studying scene***

[@malnutritionboy]

Usaaf wasn't formed yet

[@theusdollar9042]

@@malnutritionboy USAF came in in 1947, at this time it would have still been either with the Navy or the Army Air Corps.

[@malnutritionboy]

@@theusdollar9042 yep. usaf in 1947 usaaf in 1941

[@aleborke5420]

Continues to put it in water

[@agustinvenegas5238]

i just realised that for a short while in the 1900s-30's both airships and sailing commercial ships coexisted, and that's beautiful

[@tylerdurden4006]

You..just realized that...? Boats...which have been around for thousands pf years...and a blimp...in the world at the same time. Oooooookay.......

[@SeanMcArdleCertifiedAdult]

@@tylerdurden4006 why are you like this

[@aliatef7203]

@@tylerdurden4006 key word is sailing, genius

[@Orinslayer]

Airplanes are just ships that fly anyways. 😁

[@KoolAidGuy541]

It was a sinpler time

[@u.s.militia7682]

My father interviewed the reporter who witnessed the Hindenburg explosion when he first became involved in journalism in the 1950’s. I still have the reel to reel tape.

[@ImYourHucklebery117]

Send it to me

[@u.s.militia7682]

lemony Buffalo it’s not worth anything. 🙄

[@ImYourHucklebery117]

@@u.s.militia7682 send it anyways, I'll make millions 🤪, ill carry on your legacy in ypur honor

[@aj3751]

@@u.s.militia7682 that's very surprising!

[@sherlockholmes2096]

@@u.s.militia7682 Sounds fake

[@_nigelgaming]

"Up to a maximum speed of 69 knots" Narrator: *n o i c e*

[@NotWhatYouThink]

[narrator]: I had to!

[@_nigelgaming]

@@NotWhatYouThink lol

[@DLJohnsonHonourofKings]

Seeing that the German biplanes of the time could do 100 mph to it's 70 mph it was still a sitting duck.

[@akmalhafiz8763]

Which part is this?

[@kolinmartz]

@@NotWhatYouThink [narrator]: it’s not what you think.

[@bena2.014]

Those things were so friggin cool. It's a massive shame that they were so damn fragile and succeptible to weather.

[@karelpgbr]

Yeah, just imagine if they’d still be around, that’d be awesome

[@reallyhappenings5597]

Above a certain altitude wouldn't they be above all weather? say 50k feet?

[@axelpatrickb.pingol3228]

Blame it on the design philosophy these were made. Karl Arnstein who designed these behemoths made them with bigger volumes but with the stress level just near the limit of the materials capacity at the time. Older ships like the Graf Zeppelin, USS Los Angeles, even the Hindenburg are more durable than the later ones...

[@justsaiyansteve]

They died from hypothermia, they shouldve had lifevests.

[@julianbrelsford]

@@reallyhappenings5597 up there, atmospheric air pressure is around one seventh of what it is at sea level. I think you'd need an equal mass of hydrogen (or helium) to get enough buoyancy BUT that mass of buoyant gas would fill 7 times the volume. This is obviously a big problem for an airship, since it is not made out of (let's say) toy-balloon rubber intended for 7x increase in volume.

[@sarcasmo57]

I hope airships make a comeback. I want to cruise in one.

[@abuBrachiosaurus]

One company is working on one, it will be a massive airship, but it will look more like a flying wing, it is desgined to be a flying cruise ship, with dining halls, bedrooms, and an observation deck.

[@Max-xf5fc]

In Germany und France there are a few companies, which operate Helium filled ones

[@sharpx3494]

@@abuBrachiosaurus source? I am quite curious

[@Americandragonrider333.]

That would be cool.

[@beanosmeanos8650]

I think you can book a tour to ride in a good year blimp

[@enalche2]

Just as he said 69 knots, i had 69% battery, *double nice*

[@NotWhatYouThink]

😁👍🏼

[@tokaygecko8]

As did I double nice plus 2

[@migram4190]

I am the 69th like 👀

[@Thatguy0096]

Nice^2

[@ahvertex3424]

I read this comment with 69% battery

[@uselessusur835]

every war thunder player knows that random things on the ground will happily randomly fire at airship/balloon things

[@jonaslechat9472]

or end up like the very cool April 1st event that we got this year

[@belonn6121]

I like shooting the balloons on fields of normandy map

[@justarandomtechpriest1578]

Yes

[@Sean-dw1dc]

9:20 can’t imagine the fear of those three men getting dragged into the air....

[@Dunkopf]

Poor bastards

[@sebby324]

There dead

[@Evan-fh2zg]

Imagine the one that held on for two hours after watching the two other guys fall to their deaths

[@tylerdurden4006]

Can't imagine the stupidity to not let go when you see the rope tightening and rising in the sky bcoz the airship is rising too...

[@___-tp1su]

@@tylerdurden4006 they weren't as smart as you

[@JinKee]

“and this is where the success part of the video ends” oof i felt that

[@Eagles_Eye]

Brings me back to my childhood game, crimson skies * intro song starts playing*

[@omnipotank]

Yes! My cat jumped on the disk on my desk and the claws punctured it ... big sad ... I wonder if there is a free version out now

[@panzer_waffle4150]

@@omnipotank hello there, there is a way to install it you just have to spend some time searching for it and installing it but once you do it its worth it. Enjoy

[@NinjaSushi2]

High Road to Revenge!

[@metalandsteel]

They say the future is tomorrow, but seeing things like this, especially the Aero train, it's more like the future was yesterday

[@TarsonTalon]

"Ye best believe in cyber-punk dystopias, YER IN ONE!"

[@lawrencemorris2261]

No, we are advancing. If we can just move at faster rate, we can see things like this in our lifetime, actually working.

[@yakb.7690]

the reason is capitalism. Over time we ditched everything that was nice but useless in the name of this omnious efficiency that we strive for, for some reason. short term financial gain is the only maxime left. Thats why most of the new build stuff in cities is kind of ugly and basic. rather cheap now than invest in something that looks nice for the future

[@aryaaswale7316]

@@yakb.7690 Why would you do ever build these when you could have airplanes? Whats the point? If you want it go build one with your own goddamn money, why would anyone build something thats useless?

[@yakb.7690]

@@aryaaswale7316 For fun because we can. Also a helium ballon with electric engines could be a quite sustainable way of slow flying. We rule this world and still most people life in pretty bad conditions, our cities are ugly, the air hard to breathe, most people spend a lot of time doing unecessary jobs. Its dumb honestly. Everyone forgot that money is made up.. the "economy" is a system we thought up - not a law of nature.

[@alwaus723]

dude this channel is underrated

[@madcat8099]

I can thank the video game Crimson Skies for my obsession with airships. And it's nice to know that the games zeppelin carrier weren't so far fetched as it seemed.

[@c-4186]

Crimson Skies was GG

[@user-vp1yr2cv9g]

@c4cmadcat honestly, all of the weight that was loaded on the top of the Crimson Skies airships was the more “unrealistic” part of that as they could have a chance of tipping upside down if literally anything goes wrong

[@firestorm165]

I spent way too many hours on that game back in the day lol

[@ColoradoStreaming]

@@firestorm165 Same here. Especially bombing the gyrocopter around New York.

[@matteagle42]

As soon as I saw the video, I wondered how many others played this extremely cool game!

[@paqman67]

Well, since Karl Ernstein designed the Los Angeles, as well as the Macon/Akron twins, the main reasonwas that the LA wan't sent out on as many dangerous situations. The Akron was launched when the weather was son nasty that it grounded all airplanes. The Macon was subjected to extreme forces of stress during exercises. The Macon wouldhave to do flank speed maneuvers to evade being bombed during naval exercises, as well during training with it's own planes. The Macon flew at 76 knots, BTW(87 MPH). The weather may have been the reason for failure, but it was the inexperience, and right down stupidity of the US navy, that made these prorotypes fly in weather were airplanes would dare not thread. The Germans only(and last fatal acident) for commercial flying, was with the Hindenburg. They were extremely cautious when flying their ships, whereas the Americans were not.

[@NathanDudani]

Sounds about right

[@Fred_the_1996]

Sounds about right

[@comradefromsoutheast4570]

Sounds about right

[@joeluliassi1610]

The navy wanted them to fail they were too good at spotting the us fleet in war games.

[@Fred_the_1996]

@@joeluliassi1610 remove your comment

[@Flashdrive43200]

Man, I wish they hadn't dismantled it. Would be an awesome addition for an aviation museum

[@andrewrife6253]

My family lives in the region where the Shenandoah crashed and my uncle owns the largest surviving piece outside of a museum. The crash site is still marked off of i77 in Caldwell, ohio

[@westrim]

It's worth noting that the US still continued to make and use military airships, manned and unmanned, for a multitude of purposes, from antisub patrol carrying depth charges to siege balloons. They're just all blimps, and didn't have attached planes.

[@heidisparklebottom]

Wonderful work as always!

[@NotWhatYouThink]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@senioravocado1864]

Imagine these beasts in the sky, flying with graphine for it's structures and electric engines to propel it, it can even be coated with radar absorbent paint or something

[@krashd]

Radar absorbent belly and solar absorbent back, both could produce the power for the engines.

[@thunderbird1921]

That would be its only chance after the advent of good radar. It would have horrendous stealth otherwise. A big airship isn't going to fool anybody on its own.

[@richardjstuart3978]

This was in fact EXACTLY what I thought. The airships couldn't handle storms.

[@alanbryant8457]

Somewhere I remember hearing that helium is found here in the United States. That's why other countries across the Atlantic use hydrogen. I could be wrong.

[@tiksmaoc9497]

The reason is actually simpler: back then, helium was relatively expensive in these high amounts. Hydrogen is extremely cheap but is dangerous,a risk taken by smaller companies or countries with less money.

[@alanbryant8457]

Thank you. I can see the expenses being a huge part with both products. But wow hydrogen and a small spark. Hindenburg burned up 2 minutes. Poor people on board had no chance. Scary

[@ColoradoStreaming]

Helium is actually a really rare gas and we are in danger of running out soon if we dont manage the supply.

[@marvindebot3264]

Correct, the US controls 90% plus of the world's supply. Most of it is stored under atmospheric pressure in old mines. It is act5ually a very precious and valuable resource thatw e are currently wasting far too much of given how important it is in several processes.

[@oadka]

@@marvindebot3264 I agree sir

[@BstFrmThEst]

This is just so interesting and well done. I really like your channel! Again I’m so glad I found out about you and wonder why it took me this long. Good job all around!

[@NotWhatYouThink]

Thanks very much! We are happy to have found you (and many many others) as well 😊

[@Paintballman251]

I love airships so much! I hope with modern engineering and technology we can see these things up in the air more and more

[@Wolf-oc6tx]

Maybe there will be a vast civilian airship industry.

[@Trollvolk]

Where i live you can book a Trip in a Zeppelin and fly around lake constance.

[@Wolf-oc6tx]

@@Trollvolk Lovely.👍

[@szymon2078]

​@@Trollvolk yep

[@usmarshalsgamingteam7315]

“69 knots..Nice” best thing ever lol

[@dontcomply3976]

Currently 69 thumbs up, nice

[@mehmetkarakasoglu7247]

Can you make a video about "Cruiser Submarines" or "Monitor/River Monitor" next time please ?

[@NotWhatYouThink]

Thanks. We will consider it.

[@clonetrooper8669]

@@NotWhatYouThink my vote is on the cruiser submarine.

[@ComradeArthur]

@@NotWhatYouThink Surcouf!

[@christianhorner001]

Big props on sourcing this old video footage 👏👏👏

[@chrinschbro]

That sounds fun Next stop is the Carrier from Marvel lol

[@mikey_scog]

That would be awesome

[@jamesholt7340]

Its already in production,nobody knows about it yet..

[@tylerdurden4006]

Funny how some people can only learn from and speak only memes

[@frog7362]

Wrong Arsenal bird

[@aced_it9051]

Just gotta say that I love these long videos

[@pabloznotti6883]

while British, French and American airships were prone to bursting into flames or breaking in the wind. no German airship ever lost a peace time passenger until the Hindenberg disaster.

[@sgt_derpguy_2541]

6:04 man that "nice" part caught me off guard

[@jonskowitz]

There's a little more to the story. Reading through the logs of all four ships it was obvious that the Navy top brass did not understand the limitations of the airships; all four being ordered to fly an overland course that forced them to exceed their critical altitude (a factor in the loss of Shenandoah) and along known storm routes (resulting in damage to the Macon that eventually led to get loss). I've often wondered how the Akron and the Macon might have altered the war in the Atlantic as scout and ASW platforms.

[@SudrianTales]

Probably not much, the USN had poor ASW performance at the start and would've been near useless during Operation Drumroll. Heck, some U-Boat may have pulled a Reuben James on one using its 88

[@machia0705]

The airplanes were Curtiss F9C’s. Maximum speed was almost 177 mph, with a range close to 300 miles, with a maximum altitude of 19,200 feet. This airplane would extend the dirigibles scouting range by approximately 150 miles. The German built Maybach engines were to be eventually replaced by the American designed Allison V1710 V-12 engine to improve their performance. Only the Allison transmission was used in USS Akron and USS Macon for prop direction and rotation. The Allison engine was actually specifically developed for the US Navy dirigible’s but were instead eventually fitted into the Lockheed P-38, Bell P-39, Curtiss P-40, and the North American P-51A. It was also used in many experimental aircraft in the late 1930’s up until the mid 1940’s. The two stage super-turbocharger limited this engine design at critical altitude, however at lower altitudes, the Allison out-performed the British Rolls-Royce Merlin and American built Packard Merlin engines in every way. It was a rugged engine that performed flawlessly in every theater or war. It would have been an extremely reliable engine for the Navy’s two dirigibles while increasing their airspeed, but the crashes of the two airships came before the Allison V1710’s were ready to fly. Structural problems and a schedule that forced these airships to fly in questionable weather ultimately proved fatal to the United States Navy rigid LTA Program. Blimps however flew on convoy patrols during WW2 and ASW patrols up until 1962. The last US Navy blimp ASW patrol was flown out of NAS Lakehurst, which was home to the USS Los Angeles and USS Akron and was also where the German Zeppelin Hindenburg crashed in 1937.

[@skoggiehoggins1445]

I didn't think this channel was an engineering channel, but this was the by far best and most comprehensive documentary of US Airships. Thank you :)

[@MarekLewandowski_EE]

the hydrogen was never the real issue. Hydrogen was actually most of the time the solution. The reason for airship fires was mainly the highly flammable engine fuel and not the gas filling the lift bags. While the hydrogen would make an airship fire spectacular, removing the hydrogen didn’t stop airship fires from being just as deadly. The cover, the impregnated fabric itself, was flammable enough that a fire in an engine room would very likely spread to kill an airship even if it was filled with helium. This is why Zeppelin put their engines OUTSIDE the hull. At the same time hydrogen is HALF the density of helium, meaning using hydrogen generated a LOT more lift from the same volume. US filling airship with helium vastly reduced their lift and expansion margins (=safety margins) for the same structural rigidity. Remember, the lift bags are filled with pure hydrogen and are above atmospheric pressure, so no oxygen can enter them. There’s also no ignition source close to the lift bags. At the same time fuel in the engine compartments is processed with access to air, the engines themselves are a source of ignition, and their technology back then was far from perfect. The real fire risk was always the engines. Replacing hydrogen with helium was just a PR stunt to gain acceptance, akin to today’s greenwashing.

[@frds_skce]

I only have one concern when I heard "Flying Aircraft Carriers" Anti-aircraft guns

[@frds_skce]

@@FishbedFive Exactly. Any large calibers gun could shoot and pierce the flying carrier, let alone any AA gun. I wouldn't know if medium caliber could do the same but nevertheless. It's still not a very defensive design. Offensively speaking, yes if you can deploy aircrafts straight from the sky and drop bombs down to the enemy, that sounds great on paper. But i still wouldn't consider this design to begin with

[@nolongerusing7430]

*P-1112 Aigaion has entered the chat*

[@mineko2219]

Says the belkan

[@SydneySighs]

Imagine if they made a flying aircraft carrier now with modern engines and used them for air shows and things like that

[@chrissmith3587]

Could you imagine a jet fighter trying to dock with a giant balloon, that’s going to go badly

[@SydneySighs]

@@chrissmith3587 Yes

[@absolutemattlad2701]

I'm glad I found this channel, this exactly the kinda stuff I wanna see!

[@BattleshipWarspite]

I think British already did this with R23 in 1917, when she was carry Sopwith camel.

[@user-vp1yr2cv9g]

They did but they also only had 1 camel and couldn’t retreats it Cool shit though

[@FusionAero]

Storms. That's what I thought all along. With today's weather prediction tech, those Zeps could have been saved, but there's really no saving a weapons platform that the enemy knows it can attack with impunity whenever the wind kicks up.

[@aryaaswale7316]

Attack is to heavy a word rather say that shoot half a dozen bullets at em

[@Windrake101]

Solution? Invent Force fields. Fixes that issue right up.

[@Neion8]

@@Windrake101 If you can do that, why not create a zeppelin *made* out of force fields? Sci-punk/steam-fi let's go!

[@BigRat-ie3mo]

11:33 it was definitely because of the Germans. Up until the Hindenburg they never had a death on one of their zeppelins, in peace times. And I even have an old model of the Los Angels.

[@travislogerwell2675]

I like this It’s in color and it brings it to life a real look into the days of the great rigid airships.

[@sebastianb.3754]

The footage is incredible.

[@ramal5708]

What killed flying aircraft carriers? Floating aircraft carriers on the sea

[@cellokid5104]

That's normally something that would've been too cool to exist. Amazing that this got off the ground

[@googleuser3163]

They were extremely successful for about 40 years. Unfortunately the Hindenburg was the first ever disaster broadcast on film, and even though most people survived the airship the PR was just so negative that nobody wanted to go aboard one again.

[@oshadakalhara4700]

11:33 it was the German engineering definitely 😂

[@TheCheesiestNacho]

BRRRRRRRAKA MONOGA!!!

[@RatPfink66]

and the fact that _Los Angeles_ spent half her career grounded. After 1932 she never flew again and was used strictly as a static test platform.

[@pauld.b7129]

It's really too bad that helium is so rare. I always was fascinated by airships, it would be awesome to sail over the land like that. They could also be really useful in places where runways can't be built like central africa. Hopefully we find some huge store of helium someday and are able to continue this technology.

[@Windrake101]

Likely a thing that could come about if we are able to produce Helium extraction mines on other planets in the solar system.

[@Neion8]

@@Windrake101 More likely if/when we get fusion power sorted out, sail to the stars extracting hydrogen for fuel (since Hydrogen on Earth is comparatively rare making up less than 0.1% of Earth yet 75% of material in space) and then end up with a whole bunch of Helium, which we might eventually then use to make long-distance terrestrial transit more power-efficient as companies try to find uses for their waste products. Problem is, that's a long way off.

[@gabrielandradeferraz386]

@@Neion8 water has hidrogen. Just about every molecule in your body has hydrogen. Just do electrolysis. Hydrogen is pretty abundant.

[@Neion8]

@@gabrielandradeferraz386 Electrolysis is pretty energy-intensive and given that the main issue with fusion atm is its atrocious efficiency (like we can do it, it just uses more energy than it creates), I don't think relying on a process that would decrease efficiency even more is a good idea. Also, if you read what I wrote earlier, hydrogen in any form is nearly 5 times rarer that Titanium, let alone hydrogen in a pure form which is what is needed, comparively the ratio of Hydrogen:other elements in space is 535 times greater than on Earth. Given we'd eventually need to travel from this world eventually anyway if we don't want to live at constant risk of extinction, it seems an ideal multitask. On another note, we've only got so much water on Earth, destroying it to make power could end up creating the next big environmental issue if the future is built upon it.

[@gabrielandradeferraz386]

@@Neion8 I can make enough hydrogen for a fusion reactor with 1% efficiency to power my house for a month with an AA battery wtf are you talking about? grab some tap water throw some salts grab the gasses put them through a cold distillery and you are done, we have litteral oceans made of that stuff, we would have thousands of years before it even threatens to become a serious problem, and even then we have whole gass giants before we would even need to consider grabing it from stars by then fusion reactor tech would be even better, and we would probably be able to do fusion with other stuf, such as, you know, all the helium we made

[@mihaimarginean9763]

Protoss : let me introduce myself!

[@FlowerKnight2]

This is so cool, I never knew something like this actually existed!!

[@realonthecircuit]

These carriers are actually Insanely cool

[@Ebsalom]

"People of the Commonwealth, do not interfere. Our intentions are peaceful. We are the Brotherhood of Steel."

[@LucekV12]

Beautiful German technological thought

[@sacopanchez151]

Wonderful Belkan witchcraft

[@destreya3053]

Yeah it's what we didn't think☹️ 🥰

[@davidunderwood9728]

Maybe we stretched the technology as far as it could go but does make you wonder what marvels of technology we would have had if we continued with airships.

[@langoustyyy7429]

You earned a like just for the NOICE

[@tog9341]

“ Which were capable of propelling it to a maximum speed of *69* knots, *Nice* “

[@couldntthinkofayoutubename6498]

Would be cool if the usaf pulled an ace combat 7

[@razmazerz]

It must be mixed feelings between awe and fear back then when you could see this flying slowly towards your base

[@dammyjodger4950]

They were failures. Easily shot down

[@theonlyblah]

This is where the success part of the video ends... AND THIS IS WHERE AN AD BEGINS!

[@reitairue2073]

For some reason, your profile pic + the comment = hilarious lmao.

[@rickpontificates3406]

I would LOVE to see an F18 try to land on a blimp like that 🤣

[@braedenh6858]

The landing probably wouldn't be so crazy. Airships move faster and could fit a landing strip as long as a surface ship and could be equipped with arresting hooks. The crazier part would be the takeoff!

[@timflynn2136]

My father was a Machist Mate on the USS Shenandoah. Z R -1

[@paulgracey4697]

The U.S.S. Los Angeles was not the only German built ridged airship to survive with no accidents, only to be scrapped for its aluminum content to make airplanes during WWII. The Graf Zeppelin, and the Hindenburg's sister ship of the same world record size were both still in flying shape when they were also scrapped for heavier-than-air aircraft on the German side. That the Germans had more invested in the type's success than any other nation is a part of that success. The Los Angeles was over built probably because they knew it would have to be to sell the technology to Goodyear. The Shenandoah was copied from a German war zeppelin design made to reach high altitudes, and was weaker for that. Akron was heavier than Macon from American learning curves, but Macon had a Navy mandated achilles heel in its rudder shape that the Germans would not have done. Both were under tremendous pressure to show their abilities to a Navy steeped in traditions that did not allow them to even think aircraft carrier ships were very practical. What the Germans did though with their passenger designs Including the Hindenburg, was pay very great attention to the weather conditions. In the Hindenburg's case it only took one minor change in the flight schedule for advertising the beginning of its second season of transatlantic flights to become the historic tragedy we all think about. Had they gone straight to Lakehurst They could have been safely in that double wide hanger it had been designed to fit. They always flew around the outskirts of storm systems, as reported by radio from ships below.the previous year. That year they probably were also trying to stay ahead of the Flying boats that were about to eclipse them on crossing times. The airships were always limited by their pressure altitudes, even using hydrogen. That meant they would eventually meet the storm they could not avoid, though the Graf Zeppelin did have an enviably high number of safe miles when it was finally scrapped. Its use of neutral buoyancy Blau gas for fuel gave it range no other airship could meet, since it did not have to vent hydrogen nearly as often to stay below that pressure ceiling.

[@spaceranger6573]

I think these would be more practical on planets like Venus since we would be living in the clouds and there’s no oceans there.

[@BusterBuizel]

What killed them? Let’s see, Cipher, Garuda, Blaze, Monarch, and Antares. Props if you get the references

[@EarlTheWhiteNinja]

Wow. Imagine we used this in WW2 or even kept them working throughout the years and eventually upgrading them to match modern day standards.

[@Helena-me6mp]

them being useful was obvious during WW1 when germans used them to bomb england

[@ImMor_]

At 6:47 google assistant opened and searced for "door"😂😂

[@DardanellesBy108]

Great work getting those vintage video clips. Very cool video. --- With today’s technologies including light weight materials for aviation and accurate weather monitoring, I think airships would be great for recreational use.

[@AmericanNope]

This guy always slips in the small, subtle jokes. “...69 knots. Nice” Love it.

[@kylerimmele2054]

One of the coolest things in history but never once even touched on in school growing up

[@clarkdaryllomasdang6520]

Imagine that airship carrier in Ace combat become a real thing

[@ColoradoStreaming]

This was an important part of the old Crimson Skies video game. Great game for its time.

[@ColoradoStreaming]

@@Feroce Yep, that one was the best.

[@hommebanal3852]

German engineering !

[@lolcatsravenight]

Crimson skies for the PC was an insanely good game. Then the remake for the Xbox was crazy good too!!

[@skyvenrazgriz8226]

Saw another doku about this: the US was told about a flaw in their design, they chose to ignore it as the deemed this risky weather situations unlikely...

[@garyg3468]

I didn't know the Goodyear blimp had such a colorful past >XD

[@Fenrick]

Already read up on this but never realized the planes didn't have landing gear. Makes perfect sense, but also very cool.

[@sauceyjim2135]

US Navy: what ever happened to that airship we never had delivered? Charles Muntz:

[@RedSntDK]

The footage is amazing!

[@boejiden5851]

0:43 "But what killed these giant airships is *not what you think* ", implying the narrator single-handedly destroyed the fleet and is still alive to tell the tale

[@damianmedina8888]

Logistics lol imagine leaving the air carrier then back from mission, you realize your carrier is on the other side of the world.

[@apollostrong7490]

GREAT VIDEO !

[@TheGuitarman1968]

"What killed flying aircraft carriers?" Wasn't it actually Loki and Hydra that caused their destruction? Also, there is already a battleship that can actually fly in space. Hasn't anyone seen Star Blazers?

[@quillkachess901]

Damn I wish I could fly on a massive rigid airship. It would be so fucking dope to fly over vast areas of land like a airplane cruise ship hybrid. Man what could have been if only helium was in abundance and was renewable.

[@hivaladeen4892]

4:23 “serve as scouting and reconnaissance aircraft” lol, not the first thing that comes to mind when I think of the word ‘scout’. “Oh shit they’ve seen us!” *Blip turns away at 5 Knots per hour*

[@Random_Mex]

people back in the day watching these films- *wow this is like 4k with ultra RTX*

[@arjumanbanu7019]

rtx wasnt in those time.

[@Random_Mex]

@@arjumanbanu7019 almost like i was trying to make a joke.

[@NotABushFan1]

The Goodyear Airdock is still there, at one time the McDonald near the Airdock had a drawing of the USS Akron on one wall.

[@Brando501st]

The footage from the 20's and 30's is pretty incredible.

[@stevemc01]

There was actually an idea for yet ANOTHER airborne aircraft carrier in the 1970s, this time using planes from two companies: Boeing (and their 747) and Lockheed Martin (and the CL-12 class of three proposed). Neither got past the development phase. For Lockheed, it was simply a matter of the carrier being way too futuristic and EXTREMELY massive. For Boeing, it was the proposed fighters to be used in operation (constantly being outclassed). Cited from Mustard and Found and Explained.

[@Jusuff]

There was also the idea of the B36 being used as an aircraft carrier for the XF85 Goblin, however it failed for the same reason as the Boeing aircraft carrier

[@stevemc01]

@@Jusuff Oh yeah. The little fighter that kept tumbling when trying to dock.

[@faarsight]

I would assume that today the biggest issue is that they are huge targets that would be very easy to see and shoot down. You don't really get much advantage by being high up in the air as an aircraft carrier but you become a lot more vulnerable.

[@meettheamazing2456]

God zeppelins are so fucking cool, I wish they were safe enough to still be used today

[@sergeant_chris6209]

1:59 damn look at these mad lads casually standing at the top of the airship

[@alsanderandciaran]

Finding the various types of aircraft carries is interesting, the standards we know, the airship aircraft carriers and the submarine aircraft carriers by the Japanese

[@TonyLeva]

Hey the sky hook made it into “The Dark Knight”

[@randallmart92]

Strigon team leader: "Gentlemen...i do not believe a lady on earth will be able to resist us now!"

[@ianallard5453]

Woah... no words, just woah

[@tihspidtherekciltilc5469]

Up until 1995 the world's largest wooden structure was a hangar for lighter than air airships. I got to visit a year before it sadly burnt down in 1995 and was an amazing piece of history. Unfortunately I lost all of my pictures in 1999 from a hurricane.

[@Fotoschiki]

A german startup invented new designs for zeppelins a few years back. The idea was to use airships for super heavy construction lifting and transport with VERY precise placement. Helicopters are already used for that, but they can't lift 1000 tons, unlike said zeppelin. They already built the construction hall, but the construction lobby made sure this would never happen, the concept itself is too good I guess. Delivery and placement of 1000 tons without super heavy transports blocking the streets and without heavy cranes. The time and money you would safe... Construction and heavy transport companies wet their pants thinking about this. So they made the state put SO many regulations and hurdles in their way, that the company went out of money before even one prototype could be built. The construction hall is a huge indoor swimming pool now btw.

[@zilchbupkis3109]

Seeing the blimp fly thru a city like that is awesome