Schütte-Lanz SL 11
 Silhouette of SL 11
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
.svg){kind=small} German Empire | |
| Name | SL 11 |
| Operator | German Army |
| Builder | Luftschiffbau Schütte-Lanz |
| Launched | 1 August 1916 |
| Homeport | Spich |
| Fate | Shot down, September 3, 1916 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Airship |
| Tonnage | 21 tonnes |
| Displacement | 38 780 m³ of hydrogen |
| Length | 174 metres |
| Beam | 20.1 metres |
| Installed power | 4 Maybach 960 hp/716 kW total |
| Speed | 91.8 km/h |
| Complement | 16 |
The Schütte-Lanz SL 11 was a German military dirigible built in 1916 by Luftschiffbau Schütte-Lanz. It was the first German airship to be shot down while bombing England.
Operational history
[edit]
The SL 11 was based at Spich and commanded by Hauptmann Wilhelm Schramm. In the early hours of 3 September 1916, after jettisoning bombs over Essendon, Hertfordshire, destroying several houses, damaging a church, and killing two sisters aged 26 and 12,[1][2] it was then shot down over nearby Cuffley by Lt. William Leefe Robinson flying a BE 2C using incendiary ammunition. It crashed at Cuffley, killing the entire crew, who were buried at Potters Bar Cemetery; they were re-interred at Cannock Chase German Military Cemetery in 1962.[3] Robinson was awarded the Victoria Cross.
Specifications
[edit]- First Flight: 1 August 1916
- Length: 174 m (571 ft)
- Diameter: 20.1 m (66 ft)
- Gas Capacity: 38,780 m3 (1,370,000 cu ft)
- Performance: 91.8 km/h (57.0 mph; 49.6 kn)
- Payload: 21 t (21,000 kg; 46,000 lb)
- Engines: 4x Maybach HS-Lu 6-cyl in-line engines:960 hp (970 PS; 720 kW) total
Dirigibles shot down over the UK
[edit]Airships made about 51 bombing raids on Britain during the war. These killed 557 and injured another 1,358 people. More than 5,000 bombs were dropped (largely on towns and cities) across Britain, causing £1.5 million (equivalent to £128,500,000 in 2023) in damage. 84 airships took part, of which 30 were shot down or lost in accidents.[4]
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See also
[edit]Citations
[edit]- ^ "Obituary" (PDF). Telegraph and Telephone Journal. 3 (25): 14. October 1916.
- ^ "Zeppelin Raids". Herts at War. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
- ^ Baker, Brian (2002). The Zeppelin Graves on Cannock Chase (2nd revised & extended ed.). Cannock Chase: The Association of Friends of Cannock Chase. pp. 1–2.
- ^ Liddell Hart 1934, p. 76.
References
[edit]- Liddell Hart, Sir Basil Henry (1934). A History of the World War 1914–1918. Faber. ISBN 978-0-304-93653-3.