Zeppelin LZ92

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LZ 92 (tactical number L 43)
Zeppelin LZ 92 (tactical L 43) during the Action of 4 May 1917
General information
Other nameL 43
TypeS-Class rigid reconnaissance airship (Zeppelin)
National originImperial Germany
ManufacturerZeppelin Luftschiffbau
Designer
StatusDestroyed
Primary userKaiserliche Marine
Service1917
Major applicationsMaritime reconnaissance; bombing raids
Number built1 (LZ 92 corresponds to tactical L 43)
Construction numberLZ 92
SerialL 43
Flights7 (6 reconnaissance, 1 raid)
History
Introduction dateMarch 1917
First flight6 March 1917
In service1917
Last flight14 June 1917
OutcomeDestroyed in action (shot down 14 June 1917)
Developed fromS-class Zeppelin design lineage
Preserved atWreckage lost; fragments in museum collections
FateShot down and crashed into the North Sea 14 June 1917

The LZ 92 (tactical number L 43) was a German S-class (naval) Zeppelin used by the Kaiserliche Marine in 1917 for maritime reconnaissance and limited bombing operations; she flew during the spring and early summer of 1917 and was shot down on 14 June 1917 with the loss of her 25 crewmember onboard.[1]

Construction and characteristics

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LZ 92 was built to the S-class (naval) Zeppelin design and completed in early 1917; contemporary reference works and museum descriptions record her as an S-type Zeppelin used for reconnaissance at high altitude.[2]

Contemporary accounts list LZ 92/L 43 as having the typical S-class arrangement of multiple Maybach engines, gas cells and long endurance suitable for North Sea patrols and high-altitude reconnaissance.[3]

War career

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LZ 92 entered service in March 1917 and conducted several reconnaissance sorties over the North Sea and one recorded attack on English-area targets during her short career.[4]

On 4 May 1917 LZ 92 (L 43) engaged Allied ships in the North Sea and dropped a number of bombs near the British squadron that included the Australian cruiser HMAS Sydney; fragments and a contemporary report of the engagement are preserved in museum collections.[5]

Accounts of HMS/HMAS encounters show L 43 shadowing surface forces on at least one occasion in early May 1917, firing on destroyers and attempting bombing runs from high altitude.[6]

Destruction (14 June 1917)

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On 14 June 1917 LZ 92 (L 43) was intercepted by a Felixstowe H12 flying boat (Felixstowe, Flight Sub-Lieutenant Basil D. Hobbs pilot) while on patrol; the seaplane attacked from a higher altitude and used incendiary and tracer rounds, which set the airship ablaze; L 43 broke in two and crashed into the sea near Vlieland, the Netherlands with the loss of all the 25 crew members.[7]

Photographic evidence held in museum collections shows the wreckage and contemporary photographs of L 43’s destruction and rescue / recovery operations, and the Australian War Memorial holds related photographic items documenting the action and its aftermath.[8]

The loss of L 43 and similar incidents prompted a tactical shift in German naval airship operations away from lower-level patrols and toward higher altitude operations, as British seaplanes and flying boats developed effective attack techniques.[9]

Aftermath and surviving relics

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Fragments of bombs and other material associated with LZ 92 have been preserved in museum collections; one such item is a splinter of a bomb reportedly recovered from HMAS Sydney after the 4 May engagement, now catalogued in the Australian War Memorial collection.[10]

The destruction of L 43 (LZ 92) is also recorded in later museum and reference summaries (photo records and illustrated histories) making L 43 one of the better-documented Zeppelin losses of 1917.[11]

Specifications (LZ 92 / tactical L 43)

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Data from Zeppelin : rigid airships, 1893-1940[12]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 18–20
  • Capacity: 1,850 kg (4,079 lb) recorded bomb load (variable)
  • Length: 198 m (649 ft 7 in)
  • Diameter: 23.9 m (78 ft 5 in) maximum
  • Fineness ratio: 8.28
  • Volume: 55,500 m3 (1,960,000 cu ft) in 16 gas cells (S-class)
  • Empty weight: 25,000 kg (55,116 lb) approximate (S-class)
  • Gross weight: 28,900 kg (63,714 lb) approximate (S-class)
  • Fuel capacity: 5,600 kg (12,346 lb)
  • Useful lift: 61,000 kg (134,000 lb) hydrogen, standard conditions (S-class)
  • Powerplant: 5 × Maybach HSLu 6-cylinder water-cooled inline piston engines, 180 kW (240 hp) each
  • Propellers: 4-bladed Lorenzen fixed-pitch propellers

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 103 km/h (64 mph, 56 kn) typical S-class maximum
  • Cruise speed: 80 km/h (50 mph, 43 kn)
  • Range: 7,400 km (4,600 mi, 4,000 nmi) at 80 km/h (50 mph; 43 kn) typical cruise
  • Service ceiling: 5,500 m (18,000 ft) operational patrol altitude (reported for L 43)
  • Rate of climb: 10 m/s (2,000 ft/min) max permitted (S-class)

Armament

  • Guns: machine-guns in hull-top positions and gondolas
  • Bombs: up to 1,850 kg (4,079 lb) recorded bomb load

References

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  1. ^ "Zeppelin LZ92 (L43)". wartimememoriesproject.com. Retrieved 14 November 2025.
  2. ^ "Zeppelin L43, WWI". World History Encyclopedia / Imperial War Museums. 19 June 2025. Retrieved 14 November 2025.
  3. ^ "Zeppelin LZ92 (L43) – characteristics summary". wartimememoriesproject.com. Retrieved 14 November 2025.
  4. ^ "Service record summary for LZ92 (L43)". wartimememoriesproject.com. Retrieved 14 November 2025.
  5. ^ "Bomb fragment from Zeppelin L43 : HMAS Sydney I". Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 14 November 2025.
  6. ^ "Action off Rosyth and encounters with HMAS Sydney". wartimememoriesproject.com. Retrieved 14 November 2025.
  7. ^ "14 June 1917 – L43 Destroyed". airwar19141918.wordpress.com. 1 July 2017. Retrieved 14 November 2025.
  8. ^ "German Zeppelin L43, shot down 14 June 1917 (photograph)". Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 14 November 2025.
  9. ^ "Tactical aftermath of the L43 loss". airwar19141918.wordpress.com. 1 July 2017. Retrieved 14 November 2025.
  10. ^ "Bomb fragment from Zeppelin L43 : HMAS Sydney I (collection record)". Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 14 November 2025.
  11. ^ "Zeppelin L43, WWI (image and caption)". World History Encyclopedia / Imperial War Museums. 19 June 2025. Retrieved 14 November 2025.
  12. ^ Brooks, Peter W. (1992). Zeppelin : rigid airships, 1893-1940. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. pp. 103–107. ISBN 1560982284.