The Hindenburg Disaster
A Presentation by Dawna G. Lockhart
“Oh! The Humanity!”
Herb Morrison Report for WLS, Chicago
From disk
From web
Run Time: 61.24 sec.
Radio Broadcast of Disaster
Run Time: 7 min. 19 sec.
The early 20th century
saw great advances in
technology and
transportation.
Unfortunately, many
accidents
accompanied these
advances.
One such tragedy was the Hindenburg Disaster. The
Hindenburg was a state of the art dirigible (also called a
zeppelin or blimp) that erupted in fire while mooring at
Lakehurst, New Jersey on May 6, 1937.
The Hindenburg
 The Hindenburg was Nazi Germany’s pride and joy. It
was physically the largest passenger aircraft to ever fly
over the earth, even to this day. (Today’s aircraft are
smaller and can carry more passengers.)
 The Hindenburg measured 803.8
feet in length, about the same length
as 2 1/4 football fields from goal
post to goal post.
 It measured 135.1 feet in diameter, about the same
height as a 13-story building.
 Filled to capacity, the Hindenburg held 7,062,100 cubic
feet of hydrogen gas. (An average party balloon holds
about 1 1/2 cubic feet of air. It would take 4,708,067
balloons to hold as much gas as the Hindenburg.)
 The Hindenburg flew at a
maximum speed of 84 miles
per hour. The cruising speed
was around 78 miles per hour.
The speed limit on open areas
of Interstate highways is 70
miles per hour.
 The Hindenburg flew at an altitude of roughly 650
feet. Considering that today’s aircraft fly at 30,000+ feet,
this was relatively close to the ground. It had to fly
around mountains.
The People
 The passenger and crew
rooms were located
underneath the gasbag in the
body of the blimp.
 The control rooms were suspended underneath the
body of the blimp in a structure called the gondola.
Click the button to see inside the
passenger and crew rooms!
 The Hindenburg carried a
maximum of 50 passengers
and 61 crew members. On
the day of the disaster, there
were 36 passengers and a full
crew on board.
 A ticket cost $400 to cross the Atlantic one way or
$720 round trip. Considering a car cost less than $500 in
1937, only the wealthiest people could afford it.
The Disaster
 The Hindenburg was ready
to land at Lakehurst Naval Air
Station in New Jersey at 4:00pm
on May 6, 1937. However, bad
weather caused a delay in
landing.
At 6:12 pm, Charles E. Rosendahl, Commanding Officer
of Lakehurst N.A.S. cleared the Hindenburg to land.
Eleven minutes later, he recommended the Hindenburg
immediately begin landing procedures.
 At 7:00pm, the Captain of the
Hindenburg, Max Pruss, ordered the
crew to begin landing procedures.
By 7:21pm, the Hindenburg was
1000 feet from the mooring post and
300 feet in the air.
At 7:25pm, witnesses saw a small, mushroom shaped
flame rise from the tail section. Surviving crewmen stated
they heard a small explosion that sounded like a gas burner
on a stove turning on.
Within 34-37 seconds, the Hindenburg was engulfed in
flames and crashed on the ground.
 Some crewmen and
passengers jumped
immediately from the
dirigible, but did not
survive the fall. Others
waited until it was closer
to the ground before
jumping.
A few people were able to protect themselves from the
flames with furniture until the Hindenburg was on the
ground and were rescued.
 Amazingly, only 13 passengers, 22 crewmen, and 1
civilian on the ground died in the tragedy.
Why?
To this day, no one knows exactly why the Hindenburg
exploded. Many people believe the hydrogen gas ignited.
Modern research proves this unlikely. If the hydrogen had
spontaneously ignited, the Hindenburg would have
exploded to bits immediately. Instead, it burned steadily
from aft to stern.
Another popular theory is sabotage. Perhaps someone who
wished to discredit Hitler and the Nazis planted a bomb on
board?
The official U.S. investigation blames the disaster on an
electrostatic phenomenon called St. Elmo’s Fire. This is a
discharge of electricity, similar to lightning, around an
object in the atmosphere near storm cumulonimbus clouds.
The St. Elmo’s Fire may have ignited the gasbag material.
Once a hole burned through the gasbag, the hydrogen
rushed out, ignited, and rapidly spread the fire. This would
explain the fire’s rapid spread and absence of explosion.
The Hindenburg Disaster ended the use of dirigibles for
mass transportation. Today, small dirigibles, such as the
Goodyear Blimp, are used to videotape and record events
from high above. These small blimps are designed safer to
prevent catastrophes such as the Hindenburg Disaster from
occurring again.
With any new technology, there is a risk. It is new,
unknown, and unexplored. Tragedies such as the
Hindenburg Disaster serve to remind us to remain diligent
and responsible in our pursuit of the future. If we fail at
this, catastrophe may lie ahead.
References
Alabama Department of Education. Alabama learning
exchange (ALEX). [on-line]. Available:
http://alex.state.al.us/standardAll.php?grade=6&subject=SS&su
mmary=2. Retrieved 01/27/2003.
Bokow, J.C. (1997). Hydrogen exonerated in Hindenburg
disaster. NHA News. [on-line]. Availalble:
http://www.hydrogenus.com/advocate/ad22zepp.htm.
Retrieved 01/27/2003.
Hindenburg Disaster. [on-line]. Available:
http://www.otr.com/hindenburg.html. Retrieved 01/27/2003.
Hindenburg Disaster: The tragedy that ended lighter-than-air
passenger travel in rigid dirigibles. (2002).
http://history1900s.about.com/library/weekly/aa102600a.htm.
Retrieved 01/27/2003.
Mappen, Mark. Crash of the Hindenburg.
http://njtimes.rutgers.edu/crash.htm. Retrieved 01/27/2003.
Morrison, H. Recording of radio report for WLS, Chicago.
May 6, 1937. [on-line]. Available:
http://www.otr.com/ra/hinden.ram. Retrieved 01/27/2003.
Oh! the humanity! from broadcast. Edited by D. Lockhart.
http://bellsouthpwp.net/a/e/aes6634/hindcrash.wav. Created
01/27/2003.
Mystery of the Hindenburg Disaster. [on-line]. Available:
http://www.unmuseum.org/hindenburg.htm. Retrieved
01/27/2003.
Navy Lakehurst Historical Society, Inc. Hindenburg (LZ129). [on-line]. Available:
http://www.nlhs.com/hindenburg.htm. Retrieved 01/27/2003.
Ray, C. Claiborne. St. Elmo’s Fire. Science Q & A. [online] Available:
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/students/scienceqa/archive/99
0712.html. Retrieved 01/27/2003.
Graphics
Navy Lakehurst Historical Society, Inc.
http://www.nlhs.com/hindenburg.htm
Crew Quarters. Big_hindenburg_crew_quarters.jpg
Hindenburg control car under construction.
small_hindenburg_control_car_under_construction.jpg
Hindenburg at Lakehurst. smalsand.jpg.
Hindenburg burning on ground.
Small_hindenburg_burning_on_ground.jpg. Edited by D.
Lockhart, cropped for ease of viewing.
Hindenburg lounge. small_hindenburg_lounge_with_piano.jpg
Hindenburg on May 6. Smalmay6.jpg.
Hindenburg tragedy. Mini_hindenburg_tragedy.jpg.
Hindenburg wide. Hindwide.jpg.
Passenger cabin. Big_hindenburg_passenger_cabin.jpg.
Hindenburg Disaster. http://www.otr.com/hindenburg.html.
Hindenburg. hindenburg1.jpg.
About the Author
Dawna Lockhart is currently a secondary
education student at the University of
Montevallo seeking a degree in history. After
working for ten years in the “real world” she
now seeks to make professional use of her
natural affinity and love for children. She
hopes to complete her degree in 2006.
Mrs. Lockhart currently resides in a home she bought in 1998.
She married her husband, Lee, in 2000. They share their home
with four cats (Belladonna, Calista, T.C., and Pepper), two redtail
boas (Inigo and Marianis), and two hypomelanistic corn snakes
(Elvis and Kochanski).
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Passenger Cabin
Crew Quarters
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