Schütte-Lanz
Encyclopedia
Airship
An airship or dirigible is a type of aerostat or "lighter-than-air aircraft" that can be steered and propelled through the air using rudders and propellers or other thrust mechanisms...
s designed and built by the Luftschiffbau Schütte-Lanz company from 1909 until the last LS22 was delivered in 1917. One research and four passenger airships were planned for post-war use, but were never built. The Schütte-Lanz company was an early strong competitor of the more famous airships
Zeppelin
A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...
built by Ferdinand von Zeppelin
Ferdinand von Zeppelin
Ferdinand Adolf Heinrich August Graf von Zeppelin was a German general and later aircraft manufacturer. He founded the Zeppelin Airship company...
.
When the Zeppelin LZ4 met with disaster at Echterdingen in 1908, Professor Johann Schütte started to consider the problems of airship design. He decided, with the co-operation of his students to develop his own scientifically designed, high performance airship. In partnership with Dr Karl Lanz, an industrialist and wood products manufacturer he started the Schütte-Lanz Luftschiffbau on April 22, 1909. The ships were successful at first, and introduced a number of highly successful innovations.
Wood composites had a theoretical superiority as the structural material in airships up to a certain size. After that, the superiority of aluminum (and later duralumin
Duralumin
Duralumin is the trade name of one of the earliest types of age-hardenable aluminium alloys. The main alloying constituents are copper, manganese, and magnesium. A commonly used modern equivalent of this alloy type is AA2024, which contains 4.4% copper, 1.5% magnesium, 0.6% manganese and 93.5%...
) in tension was more important than the superiority of wood in compression. Schütte-Lanz airships until 1918 were composed of wood and plywood glued together. Moisture tended to degrade the integrity of the glued joints. Schütte-Lanz airships became structurally unstable when water entered the airship's imperfectly water-proofed envelope. This tended to happen during wet weather operations, but also, more insidiously, in defective or damaged hangars. In the words of Führer der Luftschiffe Peter Strasser
Peter Strasser
Peter Strasser was chief commander of German Imperial Navy Zeppelins during World War I, the main force operating bombing campaigns from 1915 to 1917. He was killed when flying the war's last airship raid over Great Britain....
:
The decision was made to compensate the company for the unusable wooden ships, and in response the company started work on a tubular aluminum-framed ship which was probably not completed.
The German Navy
German Navy
The German Navy is the navy of Germany and is part of the unified Bundeswehr .The German Navy traces its roots back to the Imperial Fleet of the revolutionary era of 1848 – 52 and more directly to the Prussian Navy, which later evolved into the Northern German Federal Navy...
had bases closer to the sea, and thus more humid. They were reluctant to accept wooden composite craft. As a result the primary customer for Shutte-Lanz airships was the Germany Army. The German Army decided well before the German Navy that airship operations were futile in the face of land-based heavier-than-air opposition.
Twenty-four Schütte-Lanz airships were designed before the end of the World War I, most of which the company was not paid for due to the collapse of the German Monarchy. By the time the last eight ships were ready, most of them could not be operated due to the loss of trained crews. There are also political-economic factors to the failure of the company, which have yet to be fully researched. There is certainly evidence for a pro-Zeppelin lobby in the German military and government that wanted to exclude all other airship manufacturers, regardless of what superior technical innovations they proposed.
In the postwar period, Professor Lanz designed a series of very large advanced airships for trans-Atlantic and trans-Pacific passenger operations (described below), as well as proposals for the US Navy’s rigid airships ZRS-4 and ZRS-5. However none of these were ever realized due to Allied objections.
SL1
The Schütte-Lanz airship SL1 was the first of 20 airships built by the company. Construction was carried out in a large hangar at RheinauRheinau (Baden)
Rheinau is a town in southwestern Baden-Württemberg, Germany and is part of the district of Ortenau.-Geography:Rheinau is located in the Upper Rhine River Plains directly on the Rhine and as such at the German-French border...
near Mannheim
Mannheim
Mannheim is a city in southwestern Germany. With about 315,000 inhabitants, Mannheim is the second-largest city in the Bundesland of Baden-Württemberg, following the capital city of Stuttgart....
. The ship was powered by four 125 horsepower (93 kW) Daimler-Benz
Daimler-Benz
Daimler-Benz AG was a German manufacturer of automobiles, motor vehicles, and internal combustion engines; founded in 1926. An Agreement of Mutual Interest - which was valid until year 2000 - was signed on 1 May 1924 between Karl Benz's Benz & Cie., and Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft, which had...
engines installed in two ventral gondolas. A distinctive feature of the Schütte-Lanz ships was that the frame was constructed from special plywood which was (supposedly) waterproofed and protected from frost. The SL1 was constructed with a diamond lattice frame and had a highly streamlined shape, allowing it to achieve a record speed of 38.3 km/h. The structure of the SL1 is very evocative of the later "geodesic
Geodesic
In mathematics, a geodesic is a generalization of the notion of a "straight line" to "curved spaces". In the presence of a Riemannian metric, geodesics are defined to be the shortest path between points in the space...
" structures of Barnes Wallis
Barnes Wallis
Sir Barnes Neville Wallis, CBE FRS, RDI, FRAeS , was an English scientist, engineer and inventor. He is best known for inventing the bouncing bomb used by the RAF in Operation Chastise to attack the dams of the Ruhr Valley during World War II...
at Vickers
Vickers
Vickers was a famous name in British engineering that existed through many companies from 1828 until 1999.-Early history:Vickers was formed in Sheffield as a steel foundry by the miller Edward Vickers and his father-in-law George Naylor in 1828. Naylor was a partner in the foundry Naylor &...
or Buckminster Fuller
Buckminster Fuller
Richard Buckminster “Bucky” Fuller was an American systems theorist, author, designer, inventor, futurist and second president of Mensa International, the high IQ society....
's domes
Geodesic dome
A geodesic dome is a spherical or partial-spherical shell structure or lattice shell based on a network of great circles on the surface of a sphere. The geodesics intersect to form triangular elements that have local triangular rigidity and also distribute the stress across the structure. When...
. It was only matched at the time by the structure of the MacMeecham airship designed and partially built in England in the first years of World War I. Fifty-three experimental flights were made between October 1911 and December 1912. The longest flight was over 16 hours. The ship was handed over to the German Army
German Army
The German Army is the land component of the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. Following the disbanding of the Wehrmacht after World War II, it was re-established in 1955 as the Bundesheer, part of the newly formed West German Bundeswehr along with the Navy and the Air Force...
on December 12, 1912 but destroyed soon afterwards when it was swept free of its temporary mooring in a storm.
- First Flight: October 1, 1911
- Length: 131 meters
- Diameter: 18.4 meters
- Gas Capacity: 19,000 cubic meters
- Performance: 38.3 km/h
- Payload: 4.5 tonnes
- Engines: 4 DaimlerDaimler Motoren GesellschaftDaimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft was a German engine and later automobile manufacturer, in operation from 1890 until 1926. Founded by Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach, it was based first in Cannstatt...
500 hp/370 kW total kapal laut
SL2
SL2 was built between January and May 1914 and transferred to Austrian military control. It carried out six missions in the first year of the war over Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. After being enlarged in summer 1915, several more missions were carried out before SL2 was stranded at Luckenwalde
Luckenwalde
Luckenwalde is the capital of the Teltow-Fläming district in the German state of Brandenburg. It is situated on the Nuthe river north of the Fläming Heath, at the eastern rim of the Nuthe-Nieplitz Nature Park, about south of Berlin...
on January 10, 1916 after running out of fuel and decommissioned. The SL2 was a perfect example why the advanced technology of Schütte-Lanz, and the advantages of wood in compression as opposed to tension allowed the Schütte-Lanz type of airship to be technically superior until a certain size had been reached.
- First Flight: February 28, 1914
- Length: 144 meters (156 meters after rebuild)
- Diameter: 18.2 meters (18.2 meters after rebuild)
- Gas Capacity: 25,000 cubic meters (27,500 cubic meters after rebuild)
- Performance: 88.2 km/h (89.3 km/h after rebuild)
- Payload: 8 tonnes (10.4 tonnes after rebuild)
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
720 hp/537 kW total (840 hp/626 kW total after rebuild)
SL3
Naval airship based at Seddin which flew 30 reconnaissance missions and one bombing mission over EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The highlight of SL3's career was its attack on the British submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
E4
HMS E4
HMS E4 was a British E class submarine built by Vickers, Barrow-in-Furness, costing £101,900. E4 was laid down on 16 May 1911, launched on 5 February 1912 and commissioned on 28 January 1913.-Service history:...
on September 24, 1915. The structure of the ship degraded because of atmospheric exposure and the ship was stranded near Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
on May 1, 1916.
- First Flight: February 4, 1915
- Length: 153.1 meters
- Diameter: 19.75 meters
- Gas Capacity: 32,390 cubic meters
- Performance: 84.6 km/h
- Payload: 13.2 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
840 hp/626 kW total
SL4
Naval airship based at Seddin. SL4 flew 21 reconnaissance missions and two bombing raids again enemy harbors on the Eastern front. It was destroyed on December 14, 1915 after its hangar collapsed due to snow accumulation on the roof.- First Flight: May 2, 1915
- Length: 153.1 meters
- Diameter: 19.75 meters
- Gas Capacity: 32,470 cubic meters
- Performance: 85 km/h
- Payload: 13.4 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
840 hp/626 kW total
SL5
SL5 was an army airship, based at DarmstadtDarmstadt
Darmstadt is a city in the Bundesland of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Rhine Main Area.The sandy soils in the Darmstadt area, ill-suited for agriculture in times before industrial fertilisation, prevented any larger settlement from developing, until the city became the seat...
. The structure was damaged during the first flight, but repaired after several months work. During its second flight the ship was forced down by bad weather at Gießen
Gießen
Gießen, also spelt Giessen is a town in the German federal state of Hesse, capital of both the district of Gießen and the administrative region of Gießen...
and stricken from service on July 5, 1915
- First Flight: February 4, 1915
- Length: 153.1 meters
- Diameter: 19.75 meters
- Gas Capacity: 32,470 cubic meters
- Performance: 83.2 km/h
- Payload: 14.3 tonnes
- Engines: 4 DaimlerDaimler Motoren GesellschaftDaimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft was a German engine and later automobile manufacturer, in operation from 1890 until 1926. Founded by Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach, it was based first in Cannstatt...
840 hp/626 kW total
SL6
Naval airship based at Seddin. Flew six reconnaissance missions, but exploded due to unknown causes with the loss of all hands while taking off on November 10, 1915.- First Flight: October 9, 1915
- Length: 162.1 meters
- Diameter: 19.75 meters
- Gas Capacity: 35,130 cubic meters
- Performance: 92.9 km/h
- Payload: 15.8 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
840 hp/626 kW total
SL7
Army airship based at KönigsbergKönigsberg
Königsberg was the capital of East Prussia from the Late Middle Ages until 1945 as well as the northernmost and easternmost German city with 286,666 inhabitants . Due to the multicultural society in and around the city, there are several local names for it...
. Carried out three reconnaissance missions and three bombing raids before suffering structural failure. Repaired and possibly enlarged before being decommissioned March 6, 1917 when the army terminated airship operations.
- First Flight: September 3, 1915
- Length: 162.1 meters
- Diameter: 19.75 meters
- Gas Capacity: 35,130 cubic meters
- Performance: 92.9 km/h
- Payload: 15.6 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
840 hp/626 kW total
SL8
Naval airship based at Seddin. Carried out 34 reconnaissance missions and three bombing raids, carrying 4,000 kg of bombs each mission. Held the record for the greatest number of combat missions of any Schütte-Lanz airship. Decommissioned due to age November 20, 1917.- First Flight: March 30, 1916
- Length: 174 meters
- Diameter: 20.1 meters
- Gas Capacity: 38,780 cubic meters
- Performance: 96.8 km/h
- Payload: 18.7 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
960 hp/716 kW total
SL9
Naval airship based at Seddin. Carried out 13 reconnaissance missions and four bombing raids carrying 4,230 kg of bombs each mission. Crashed in BalticBaltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
, possibly after lightning strike on March 30, 1917.
- First Flight: March 30, 1916
- Length: 174 meters
- Diameter: 20.1 meters
- Gas Capacity: 38,780 cubic meters
- Performance: 92.9 km/h
- Payload: 19.8 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
960 hp/716 kW total
SL10
Army airship based at YambolYambol
Yambol is a city in southeastern Bulgaria, an administrative centre of Yambol Province. It lies on both banks of the Tundzha river in the historical region of Thrace. As of February 2011, the town has a population of 72,843 inhabitants. It is occasionally spelt 'Jambol'.The administrative centres...
, Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
. Carried out a 16 hour reconnaissance mission. Disappeared during a subsequent attack on Sevastopol
Sevastopol
Sevastopol is a city on rights of administrative division of Ukraine, located on the Black Sea coast of the Crimea peninsula. It has a population of 342,451 . Sevastopol is the second largest port in Ukraine, after the Port of Odessa....
, possibly due to bad weather July 28, 1916.
- First Flight: March 30, 1916
- Length: 174 meters
- Diameter: 20.1 meters
- Gas Capacity: 38,800 cubic meters
- Performance: 90 km/h
- Payload: 21.5 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
960 hp/716 kW total
SL11
Army airship based at Spich. Commanded by Hauptmann Wilhelm Schramm. The first German airship to be shot down over Britain; it was attacked over Hertfordshire by Lt. W.L. Robinson in a BE 2CRoyal Aircraft Factory BE.2
The Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2 was a British single-engine two-seat biplane which was in service with the Royal Flying Corps from 1912 until the end of World War I. The "Bleriot" in its designation refers to the fact that, like the Bleriot types it was of tractor configuration, with the...
with incendiary ammunition on September 3, 1916. It crashed at Cuffley
Cuffley
Cuffley is a village in the Welwyn Hatfield district of south-east Hertfordshire located between Cheshunt and Potters Bar. It has a population of just over 4,000 people. Politically, Cuffley is part of Broxbourne Constituency in the House of Commons, and sends a Councillor to Hertfordshire County...
, having bombed Saint Albans. The crew were buried at Potters Bar
Potters Bar
Potters Bar is a town in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire, England, located north of Central London. In 2001 it had a population of 21,618....
Cemetery: and in 1962 they were re-interred at Cannock Chase German war cemetery
Cannock Chase German war cemetery
The Cannock Chase German war cemetery is on Cannock Chase, Staffordshire, England.On 16 October 1959, the governments of the United Kingdom and the Federal Republic of Germany made an agreement about the future care of German military personnel and German civilian internees of both World wars...
.
- First Flight: August 1, 1916
- Length: 174 meters
- Diameter: 20.1 meters
- Gas Capacity: 38,780 cubic meters
- Performance: 91.8 km/h
- Payload: 21 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
960 hp/716 kW total
SL12
Navy airship based at Alhorn. Obsolete in design before completion, this ship only flew reconnaissance missions. Badly damaged after hitting gasometer near hangar and deleted December 28, 1916- First Flight: November 9, 1916
- Length: 174 meters
- Diameter: 20.1 meters
- Gas Capacity: 38,780 cubic meters
- Performance: 86.4 km/h
- Payload: 21 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
960 hp/716 kW total
SL13
Army airship based at LeipzigLeipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
. Considered unfit for combat duty and used for training only. Badly damaged when hangar collapsed because of heavy snow and stricken February 8, 1917.
- First Flight: October 29, 1916
- Length: 174 meters
- Diameter: 20.1 meters
- Gas Capacity: 38,780 cubic meters
- Performance: 90 km/h
- Payload: 20.5 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
960 hp/716 kW total
SL14
Navy airship based at Seerapen and Wainoden. Carried out two reconnaissance missions and two bombing raids. A later attack on RigaRiga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
was abandoned because of engine failure. Rebuilt February 1917 but later damaged before finally being scrapped on May 18, 1917.
- First Flight: May 16, 1916
- Length: 174 meters
- Diameter: 20.1 meters
- Gas Capacity: 38,800 cubic meters
- Performance: 93.6 km/h
- Payload: 20.5 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
960 hp/716 kW total
SL15
Army airship based at MannheimMannheim
Mannheim is a city in southwestern Germany. With about 315,000 inhabitants, Mannheim is the second-largest city in the Bundesland of Baden-Württemberg, following the capital city of Stuttgart....
. No active service. Decommissioned August 1917.
- First Flight: November 4, 1916
- Length: 174 meters
- Diameter: 20.1 meters
- Gas Capacity: 38,780 cubic meters
- Performance: 95.4 km/h
- Payload: 21.5 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
960 hp/716 kW total
SL16
Intended for the Army, this ship was never officially commissioned and was laid up at Spich. Scrapped August 1917.- First Flight: January 18, 1917
- Length: 174 meters
- Diameter: 20.1 meters
- Gas Capacity: 38,800 cubic meters
- Performance: 95.4 km/h
- Payload: 21.5 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
960 hp/716 kW total
SL17
Intended for the Army, this ship was never officially commissioned and was laid up at Allenstein. Scrapped August 1917.- First Flight: April 19, 1917
- Length: 174 meters
- Diameter: 20.1 meters
- Gas Capacity: 38,780 cubic meters
- Performance: 95.4 km/h
- Payload: 21.5 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
960 hp/716 kW total
SL18
Construction completed at LeipzigLeipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
base, but ship destroyed by hangar collapse on February 8, 1917.
- First Flight: N/A
- Length: 174 meters
- Diameter: 20.1 meters
- Gas Capacity: 38,800 cubic meters
- Performance: N/A
- Payload: 21.5 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
960 hp/716 kW total
SL19
Never built due to lack of space at LeipzigLeipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
base, due to hangar collapse on February 8, 1917.
- First Flight: N/A
- Length: 174 meters
- Diameter: 20.1 meters
- Gas Capacity: 38,800 cubic meters
- Performance: N/A
- Payload: 21.5 tonnes
- Engines: 4 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
960 hp/716 kW total
SL20
Navy ship based at Alhorn. Burnt in huge hangar explosion and fire with four zeppelin airships on January 5, 1918 after only two missions.- First Flight: September 9, 1917
- Length: 198.3 meters
- Diameter: 22.96 meters
- Gas Capacity: 56,000 cubic meters
- Performance: 102.6 km/h
- Payload: 35.5 tonnes
- Engines: 5 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
1,200 hp/895 kW total
SL21
Zeesen
Zeesen is a village south of Königs Wusterhausen in Germany, known for Deutschlandsender Zeesen which was built in 1927 and the Zeesen short-wave transmitter ....
and used for static testing. Decommissioned February 1918.
- First Flight: November 26, 1917
- Length: 198.3 meters
- Diameter: 22.96 meters
- Gas Capacity: 56,350 cubic meters
- Performance: 102.6 km/h
- Payload: 36 tonnes
- Engines: 5 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
1,200 hp/895 kW total
SL22
Intended for Navy but refused acceptance on grounds of insufficient payload. Based at Gegen and scrapped June 1920.- First Flight: June 5, 1918
- Length: 198.3 meters
- Diameter: 22.96 meters
- Gas Capacity: 56,350 cubic meters
- Performance: 95.4 km/h
- Payload: 37.5 tonnes
- Engines: 5 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
1,200 hp/895 kW total
SL23
Never commissioned. First Schütte-Lanz ship with tubular aluminum frame. May have been complete at war's end but no further details are known.- First Flight: N/A
- Length: 202 meters
- Diameter: 25.4 meters
- Gas Capacity: 68,800 cubic meters
- Performance: 122.4 km/h
- Payload: 46 tonnes
- Engines: 8 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
2,240 hp/1,670 kW total
SL24
Never commissioned. Second Schütte-Lanz ship with tubular aluminum frame. May have been completed after war, but no further details.- First Flight: N/A
- Length: 232 meters
- Diameter: 25.4 meters
- Gas Capacity: 78,800 cubic meters
- Performance: 116.6 km/h
- Payload: 59.5 tonnes
- Engines: 8 MaybachMaybachMaybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
2,240 hp/1,670 kW total
SL101
After the war, Schütte-Lanz came up with several peacetime airship projects which were never realized. Based on the metal framed SL23 and SL24, the first was the SL101. This was intended for a regular transatlantic service to New York or South America.- First Flight: N/A
- Length: 228.5 meters
- Diameter: 28.75 meters
- Gas Capacity: 101,700 cubic meters
- Performance: 130 km/h
- Payload: N/A
- Engines: N/A
SL102 Panamerica
This was intended for a regular transatlantic service to New York or South America.- First Flight: N/A
- Length: 298 meters
- Diameter: 38.54 meters
- Gas Capacity: 220,000 cubic meters
- Performance: 130 km/h
- Payload: N/A
- Engines: N/A
SL103 Pacific
This was intended for a regular transatlantic service to New York or South America, although the name indicates different aspirations.- First Flight: N/A
- Length: 274.5 meters
- Diameter: 34.77 meters
- Gas Capacity: 150,000 cubic meters
- Performance: 130 km/h
- Payload: N/A
- Engines: N/A
American Airship Tender
Schütte-Lanz submitted an unsuccessful design to the U.S. Navy in 1926 in competition to the successful GoodyearGoodyear Tire and Rubber Company
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company was founded in 1898 by Frank Seiberling. Goodyear manufactures tires for automobiles, commercial trucks, light trucks, SUVs, race cars, airplanes, farm equipment and heavy earth-mover machinery....
designs, USS Akron (ZRS-4)
USS Akron (ZRS-4)
USS Akron was a helium-filled rigid airship of the United States Navy that was lost in a weather-related accident off the New Jersey coast early on April 4, 1933, killing 73 of the 76 crew and passengers on board...
and USS Macon (ZRS-5)
USS Macon (ZRS-5)
USS Macon was a rigid airship built and operated by the United States Navy for scouting. She served as a "flying aircraft carrier", launching Curtiss F9C Sparrowhawk biplane fighters. In service for less than two years, in 1935 Macon was damaged in a storm and lost off California's Big Sur coast,...
.
See also
- R31 (airship)
- R32 (airship)
- List of Parseval airships
- List of Zeppelins
- Aviation in World War IAviation in World War IWorld War I was the first war in which aircraft were deployed on a large scale. Tethered observation balloons had already been employed in several wars, and would be used extensively for artillery spotting. Germany employed Zeppelins for reconnaissance over the North Sea and strategic bombing raids...
- ZeppelinZeppelinA Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...
External links
- Uni-Bibliothek Oldenburg. Das Johann Schütte-Projekt - archive of 1700 photographs of Schütte-Lanz construction, plans and related material