Page:EB1922 - Volume 30.djvu/86

56

impossible to assess the full value of this work as a warlike operation.

A less well-known Zeppelin activity was the patrol of the North Sea in conjunction with the navy. These patrols were of extra- ordinary extent and thoroughness, and must have proved a most valuable assistance to the naval authorities. The value of a similarly thorough patrol to the British would probably have been even greater. British airship activity was confined almost entirely to anti-submarine work carried out by non-rigid ships partly as patrols over definite areas and partly as protection to convoys. As a prevention to submarine activity these small ships were extremely effective, although the number of sub- marines actually destroyed through their direct agency was

small. The use of a hydrophone from an airship while in flight was being successfully developed at the time of the Armistice, and promised greatly to increase the effectiveness of their work. The function of these ships was to detect and keep touch with the submarine until the surface craft arrived with better locating gear and a much more ample supply of explosive with which to carry out the actual destruction. The large ships did a certain amount of scouting work for the fleet, but this operation was really only in course of development at the time of the Armistice. The number of hours flown on patrols was over 87,000 and the distance covered well over two million miles.

One remarkable operation by the Zeppelin Ls7 was her flight to East Africa for the relief of the German force there. She left

AIRSHIP

Year of Com- ple- tion

Length

Diam- eter

Ca- pacity

Gross Lift

Disposable Lift

Useful Lift

Engines

Speed

Endurance

Max.

Nor- mal Cruis- ing

Cruis- ing

At 40 kts.

feet

feet

million cub. ft.

tons

tons

%of gross

tons

%of gross

No

H.P.

knots

knots

hrs.

hrs.

RIGIDS Germany: Zeppelin L4 .... Lio ....

L2O ....

L30 .... L 5 8. . . . L72. . . . " Bodensee" (modified) Lioo (design). Schiitte-Lanz SL3 SL6. . SL8. . SL20. . Britain: Rq

1914

1915 1916 1916 1918 1918

1915 1915 1916 1917

1917 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1921

518 536 586 645 645 743 430 781 513 534 571 650

526

535

< 15 640

535 672

695

49 61

79 79 79 79 61-5 96 65 65 66

75

53 53 66

79 70

79 86

793 1-126 1-264

1-949 1-978 2-420 800 3-814 1-144 1-236

1-367 1-978

-89 95 1-553 1-958 i -200

2-IOI 2-724

24-1

34-2 38-4 59-2 60-0

73-45

22-0 II5-8

34-7 37-5 41-5 60-0

25-6

27-3

47-14

59-5 36-43 63-8 82-7

8-53 14-9 16-52 30-0

36-93 47-0 ii-l 75-6 12-18 14-58 18-0 32-56

5-i 5-6 16-43

25-9 14-0

32-5 50-0

35-3 43-5 43-o 50-6 61-5 64-0 50-5 65-3 35-1 38-9 43-4 54-2

2O-O

20-5 34-8 44-7 38-5 51-0 60-5

3-3 8-44

10-0

17-35 27-8 36-72 8-0 60- 1 6-16 8-30 11-30 23-5

1-6 1-8 8-9 17-2 7-81

25-5 38-0

13-7 24-7 26-0 29-4 46-4 50-0 36-3 52-0 18-0

22-2 27-3

39-2

6-25

6-6 18-9 28-8

2i-5 40-0 46-0

3

4

i

5 6

4 10

4 4 4 6

4 4 5 5 4 4 6

2IO

240 240 240 260 26O 240 26O 210 2IO 240 240

1 80 26O 250 250 230 350 350

45 52-4 51-4 55-7 61-7 66-4 68 66-6

45-7 50-1

5-i 55-4

36 45

58-2

52

53-9 54 60

38-6 39-6 42 47-4 49-1

54 53-3 36-5 40-1 40-1 44-3

29 36 46-6 41-7

43 43-2

48

39 77 80

93

178 182 76 1 80 56 75 90 126

20 26

1 06

65 130

157

22

70

77 107 290 330 165 414

43 76 91 170

18

85 119 81 163

245

R23

R32 (Schiitte-Lanz type) Rl4

R8o ....

R 3 6

R38 (design) ....

SEMI-RIGIDS Italy. O

1918 1918 1917 1918 1920

1914 1917

177 264 298 298 410

400 520

35 59 66 66 70

53 65

127 441 635 635 I-2OO

-69 I-I2

3'9 I3-36 19-3 19-3 36-3

20-9 33-8

1-37 6-7 9-2 8-64 18-1

35-0 50-1 47-6 44-7 50-0

95 5-42 7-39 6-83

13-0

6-0 15-0

25-0 40-5 38-3 35-4 36-2

28-7 44-5

2

3

2

4 6

3

4

120 2OO 2IO

15 500

1 6O 240

47 45 38 47 68

43 49

37'6 36 30 37

53

34 39

28 69 140

65 IOO

96

1 20

23 48

47 230

59

US

MSI ....

Forlanini 5 .... Forlanini 6 ....

Germany: M. IV. E PL27

NON-RIGIDS Britain: Beta

1912 1913 1915 1916

1915

1917 1916

1913 I9'5

1919 1916 1918

1917 1918 1920

H3 H3 196

220 262

278 400

264 307 157

160 192

198

54-5 27-7

30-7 37-2

44-1 54-2

49-5 54

52-8

46, 35-6

31-6

42 42

05 12

06 07

170

200 360

28 47

336 368 096

084 180 190

1-52 3-63 1-82

2-155 5-15

6-4 11-44

8-5 H-3

IO-2

n-4

2-92

2-55 5-45

5-75

5 696

1-4

1-93 4-34

4-0 4-5 9

866 1-63

2-12

27-0 32-3 27-0

30-2 37-9

39-0 39-4 30-9

34-o 30-0

37-o

435 9 1-285 3-24

2-8

6

2-8

3 : 6

611 i-i

1-55

20-2

3

20-1 ^

28-3

33-o 42-0

27-4

27-2

20-5

24-0 2O-2

27-0

i

2 I I I I I I 2

2 2

2 2 2

I 2

2

45 80 70 80 no 220 no 260 260

1 80

2IO

250 22O 80

IOO

150

I2S

31 35 40

43 40

51 50

35 37

43-5 38 42

41 52

50

25

28 32 35 32

41 40

28 30

35 30 33-5

33 4'-5 40

8-5

10

29 19

33 53

20

43 9

27 3i

37

21

8

22-5

36

12

7

16 33

37

Eta

s.s.

s.s.z

Coastal*

North Sea .... Germany: PLi8

PL25

France: Astra 19 Tunisie ....

Zodiac Vedette. . . America: B

C ....

D

NOTE. The trials made with the earlier ships were less complete and less accurate than those made later. The performance was in many instances calculated and recorded on a basis very different from the present standard. The figures given in the table are, however, the best that can be derived from the sources available.

The endurance depends upon the weight available for petrol when a deduction from the useful lift has been made for crew, armament, stores, etc. This deduction necessarily varies with different types of ship, and the basis on which it is made is usually not stated in the records that have been preserved. The endurance should not, therefore, be regarded as a reliable basis of comparison. The figures given, are those for the best ship of each class.