1 00:00:11,611 --> 00:00:16,378 It was the largest and most celebrated passenger airship ever built. 2 00:00:17,384 --> 00:00:20,182 But like another legendary transatlantic liner, 3 00:00:20,320 --> 00:00:22,686 the Hindenburg was doomed. 4 00:00:26,159 --> 00:00:26,887 Get this, Scotty! 5 00:00:27,027 --> 00:00:27,823 Get this Scotty! 6 00:00:29,729 --> 00:00:31,822 I looked out the window and saw the fire, 7 00:00:32,632 --> 00:00:34,964 and my only concern was to get out. 8 00:00:38,838 --> 00:00:39,429 I thought to myself, 9 00:00:39,572 --> 00:00:43,372 "This is the end. I can't survive the end." 10 00:00:43,510 --> 00:00:46,570 4,5 hundred feet into the sky. 11 00:00:46,713 --> 00:00:49,375 It's a terrific crash, ladies and gentlemen. 12 00:00:49,516 --> 00:00:50,813 The smoke and the flames 13 00:00:50,950 --> 00:00:53,111 and the plane is crashing to the ground, 14 00:00:53,253 --> 00:00:55,278 Oh, the humanity. 15 00:00:59,959 --> 00:01:01,586 I guess it looked like hell. 16 00:01:01,728 --> 00:01:04,026 It was like hell on fire. 17 00:01:04,164 --> 00:01:06,758 It was something that will stay with you for the rest of your life. 18 00:01:09,002 --> 00:01:11,163 Some said it was only a tragic accident. 19 00:01:12,338 --> 00:01:15,569 Others blamed a murderous act of sabotage. 20 00:01:15,708 --> 00:01:18,734 But what really destroyed the Hindenburg? 21 00:01:20,313 --> 00:01:22,281 Now, after more than half a century, 22 00:01:22,415 --> 00:01:24,508 a former NASA engineer may have uncovered 23 00:01:24,651 --> 00:01:26,983 the real answer to the mystery. 24 00:01:27,087 --> 00:01:31,990 What I found was the fact that they knew that there was a problem. 25 00:01:33,326 --> 00:01:36,352 It was a problem that would destroy the Hindenburg 26 00:01:38,064 --> 00:01:43,468 and bring to an abrupt and tragic end the golden age of passenger airships. 27 00:02:38,791 --> 00:02:42,352 It was, by every account, simply magnificent- 28 00:02:42,495 --> 00:02:46,056 the largest object that had ever been lofted into the air. 29 00:02:46,199 --> 00:02:49,794 And wherever it touched down on its transatlantic crossings, 30 00:02:49,936 --> 00:02:52,837 the Hindenburg was sure to draw a crowd. 31 00:02:53,039 --> 00:02:55,769 At the Naval Air Station at Lakehurst, New Jersey, 32 00:02:55,909 --> 00:03:00,437 thousands would stand in line for hours just to get a closer look. 33 00:03:03,316 --> 00:03:10,484 This was perhaps the most beautiful flying machine ever built-stately, 34 00:03:10,623 --> 00:03:16,653 streamlined, poised to rule the skies. 35 00:03:19,132 --> 00:03:22,124 Today, Lakehurst is a much quieter place, 36 00:03:22,268 --> 00:03:26,796 but it's still haunted by echoes from the airships' glory days. 37 00:03:28,241 --> 00:03:31,404 John Lannacone remembers that time. 38 00:03:31,544 --> 00:03:34,240 He was part of the Hindenburg's ground crew. 39 00:03:38,218 --> 00:03:43,417 Now he's one of the few visitors to the giant hangar that once sheltered it. 40 00:04:03,343 --> 00:04:06,471 I was 18 years old when I got here. 41 00:04:06,613 --> 00:04:10,447 And I saw this tremendous building in there. 42 00:04:10,583 --> 00:04:13,711 I always say it's one of the biggest buildings in the world. 43 00:04:17,056 --> 00:04:19,547 We put it in a hangar the first time it came here. 44 00:04:19,692 --> 00:04:21,626 And it just about fit. 45 00:04:22,161 --> 00:04:27,963 The Germans, when they designed it, it was supposed to be 814 feet long. 46 00:04:28,067 --> 00:04:31,434 Then they realized that this hangar's only 806 feet long, 47 00:04:31,571 --> 00:04:34,005 so they cut ten feet off. 48 00:04:34,140 --> 00:04:35,801 There was a one-foot clearance on each end. 49 00:04:36,009 --> 00:04:38,978 It just fit in here and we closed the doors. 50 00:04:40,079 --> 00:04:43,412 It's sad, I mean, because it's not being utilized 51 00:04:43,549 --> 00:04:44,880 for what it should be utilized. 52 00:04:45,018 --> 00:04:49,455 I mean, it looks like it's nothing but a warehouse and junk. 53 00:04:49,589 --> 00:04:52,023 That's what it looks like to me. 54 00:04:55,862 --> 00:04:58,092 Airships have had their place and their time. 55 00:04:58,231 --> 00:05:00,199 And it's gone. 56 00:05:00,333 --> 00:05:03,268 I don't think airships will ever come back. 57 00:05:13,646 --> 00:05:17,946 History's first successful manned flight was in a hot-air balloon 58 00:05:18,017 --> 00:05:23,649 launched by the Montgolfier brothers into the skies over France in 1783. 59 00:05:23,790 --> 00:05:26,281 But balloons move at the mercy of the wind, 60 00:05:26,426 --> 00:05:29,691 with no way to control their direction or speed. 61 00:05:29,829 --> 00:05:33,128 Some dreamed of a method of directed flight. 62 00:05:33,266 --> 00:05:38,135 The design for these so called dirigibles were certainly imaginative. 63 00:05:38,271 --> 00:05:41,638 But even the ones that could fly weren't very practical. 64 00:05:41,774 --> 00:05:44,504 The biggest challenge was building a dirigible big enough 65 00:05:44,644 --> 00:05:47,511 to carry passengers and cargo. 66 00:05:47,914 --> 00:05:51,475 One of the pioneers was Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin. 67 00:05:51,617 --> 00:05:54,848 He first encountered manned balloons in the United States 68 00:05:55,021 --> 00:06:00,254 as a German military observer of the Civil War and he even flew in one. 69 00:06:01,861 --> 00:06:04,295 Back in Germany, Zeppelin set to work, 70 00:06:04,430 --> 00:06:07,661 designing a large dirigible with a rigid framework 71 00:06:07,800 --> 00:06:09,927 covered by a skin of fabric. 72 00:06:10,002 --> 00:06:13,961 It would be lifted not by hot air, but by hydrogen. 73 00:06:16,242 --> 00:06:20,406 In 1900, his creation would finally fly. 74 00:06:22,615 --> 00:06:25,083 Within a decade, there were tourist flights, 75 00:06:25,218 --> 00:06:29,348 and even regular passenger service between German cities. 76 00:06:31,190 --> 00:06:35,490 Count von Zeppelin was building the world's first airline. 77 00:06:37,130 --> 00:06:40,827 But airships had other uses besides carrying passengers. 78 00:06:41,000 --> 00:06:43,230 And with the beginning of World War One, 79 00:06:43,369 --> 00:06:47,169 airship construction became a military priority. 80 00:06:47,640 --> 00:06:50,837 Nothing gets developed as fast as what things do during a war. 81 00:06:51,010 --> 00:06:53,103 Okay, we experience it even today. 82 00:06:53,246 --> 00:06:56,807 So the First World War definitely saw a dramatic size increase. 83 00:06:57,016 --> 00:06:59,814 The airships went from something like 700,000 cubic square feet 84 00:06:59,952 --> 00:07:03,149 to two-and-a-half million just within the span of four years. 85 00:07:04,724 --> 00:07:08,990 The Zeppelins were soon transformed into weapons of war, 86 00:07:10,029 --> 00:07:13,760 first as observation platforms, then in a new role: 87 00:07:13,966 --> 00:07:16,935 as the world's first strategic bomber fleet. 88 00:07:22,375 --> 00:07:25,936 But they demonstrated their vulnerability as well: 89 00:07:28,014 --> 00:07:31,313 high-flying fighter planes brought down dozens of Zeppelins 90 00:07:31,451 --> 00:07:35,478 in fiery explosions, fueled by hydrogen. 91 00:07:47,900 --> 00:07:49,458 In the years after the war, 92 00:07:49,602 --> 00:07:53,333 airship technology would find champions around the world. 93 00:07:53,806 --> 00:07:57,708 In the U.S., the Navy developed its own military airships. 94 00:07:57,844 --> 00:08:00,404 The way the Navy used these big airships 95 00:08:00,546 --> 00:08:03,379 was the way the Germans had used them in World War I. 96 00:08:03,516 --> 00:08:07,714 And this was to send the airship itself out to scout. 97 00:08:07,854 --> 00:08:12,484 Well, an airship is an easy thing to see, and it can easily be shot down. 98 00:08:13,993 --> 00:08:15,517 Partly to protect their airships, 99 00:08:15,661 --> 00:08:19,688 the Navy transformed them into flying aircraft carriers, 100 00:08:19,832 --> 00:08:23,666 outfitting them with small fighter-reconnaissance biplanes. 101 00:08:26,672 --> 00:08:31,132 They put a trapeze on the underside of the airship. 102 00:08:31,277 --> 00:08:33,768 And the airplane would come up and land on it 103 00:08:33,980 --> 00:08:37,040 by hooking the hook on a bar at the end of this trapeze, 104 00:08:37,183 --> 00:08:42,177 which would then pull the airplane up to a hangar inside the ship. 105 00:08:45,525 --> 00:08:50,519 They made the hangar large enough to accommodate five small fighters. 106 00:09:03,576 --> 00:09:07,273 But there would be problems: the Navy's American-built airships 107 00:09:07,413 --> 00:09:12,077 were plagued by freakish accidents and three of them met tragic ends. 108 00:09:12,218 --> 00:09:18,214 The first, the Shenandoah, broke apart in a thunderstorm and crashed in 1925, 109 00:09:18,357 --> 00:09:20,325 leaving a third of its crew dead, 110 00:09:20,459 --> 00:09:24,020 and its remains scattered across the Ohio countryside. 111 00:09:30,102 --> 00:09:34,038 In 1932, during a routine landing of the USS Akron, 112 00:09:34,173 --> 00:09:37,267 three members of her ground crew were dragged into the air 113 00:09:37,410 --> 00:09:39,970 when the Akron suddenly lurched upward. 114 00:09:41,814 --> 00:09:46,751 The helpless sailors clung to the line in desperation until first one, 115 00:09:46,886 --> 00:09:50,549 and then another tumbled hundreds of feet to their deaths. 116 00:10:01,601 --> 00:10:04,832 The third managed to hang on for more than an hour 117 00:10:04,971 --> 00:10:08,134 before he was finally hauled on board. 118 00:10:11,777 --> 00:10:13,108 Less than a year later, 119 00:10:13,245 --> 00:10:19,707 the Akron crashed off the New Jersey coast, killing 73 of her 76 crewmen. 120 00:10:21,320 --> 00:10:25,051 The last big airship that the U.S. Navy had was the Macon. 121 00:10:25,191 --> 00:10:28,558 It was lost February 12, 1935 122 00:10:28,694 --> 00:10:32,095 in squally weather off Point Sur, California. 123 00:10:33,699 --> 00:10:35,894 There were 83 on board and, in this particular accident, 124 00:10:36,035 --> 00:10:38,435 only 2 people were lost in it. 125 00:10:39,739 --> 00:10:45,200 And there it lay, its exact location unknown for over 50 years. 126 00:10:47,513 --> 00:10:49,845 Finally, in the early 1990s, 127 00:10:49,982 --> 00:10:53,179 an expedition covered by National Geographic Magazine 128 00:10:53,319 --> 00:10:56,482 found and photographed the remains of the Macon. 129 00:10:59,692 --> 00:11:04,959 A Navy submersible located the Macon in nearly 1,500 feet of water. 130 00:11:07,633 --> 00:11:12,627 Her tangled skeleton still harbored the remains of her fighter planes. 131 00:11:12,772 --> 00:11:15,332 It was a sad reminder of the Navy's brief, 132 00:11:15,474 --> 00:11:19,069 disastrous flirtation with rigid airships. 133 00:11:25,151 --> 00:11:28,985 Elsewhere, airships would meet with greater success. 134 00:11:29,088 --> 00:11:33,616 In Germany, the civilian airship industry was reborn after the war, 135 00:11:33,759 --> 00:11:36,023 under the leadership of Hugo Eckener, 136 00:11:36,162 --> 00:11:39,620 a charismatic successor to the late Count von Zeppelin. 137 00:11:40,332 --> 00:11:42,800 Eckener had the experience, the personality, 138 00:11:42,935 --> 00:11:44,732 and the entrepreneurial spirit 139 00:11:44,870 --> 00:11:48,863 to realize Zeppelin's vision of a fleet of passenger liners. 140 00:11:50,876 --> 00:11:54,368 He gathered together the best and brightest engineers and designers 141 00:11:54,513 --> 00:11:59,644 to build the greatest airship yet, which he named after his mentor. 142 00:12:03,522 --> 00:12:06,787 When the Graf Zeppelin was launched in 1928, 143 00:12:06,992 --> 00:12:10,223 she was hailed as the most advanced airship ever. 144 00:12:13,332 --> 00:12:16,665 But Eckener was eager to build on this success. 145 00:12:17,136 --> 00:12:19,969 So he came up with an unprecedented scheme: 146 00:12:20,039 --> 00:12:23,099 to fly his creation around the world. 147 00:12:24,844 --> 00:12:25,868 If he could pull it off, 148 00:12:26,011 --> 00:12:30,414 it would be a technological triumph- and a publicity bonanza. 149 00:12:31,650 --> 00:12:34,380 This is very much like the Lindbergh flight if you will. 150 00:12:34,520 --> 00:12:39,719 It's one of the big events that people had been waiting for to happen. 151 00:12:42,194 --> 00:12:44,560 Newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst 152 00:12:44,697 --> 00:12:49,828 saw the potential and paid the Zeppelin Company $100,000 153 00:12:50,035 --> 00:12:51,730 for the rights to cover the flight. 154 00:12:51,871 --> 00:12:53,998 And look at the size of the Graf Zeppelin, 155 00:12:54,106 --> 00:12:56,768 which looks big even with Atlantic Ocean under it. 156 00:12:56,909 --> 00:13:01,175 This is first leg of long globe-circling glide of giant ship, 157 00:13:01,313 --> 00:13:04,373 destined to set a record for round the world travel. 158 00:13:10,456 --> 00:13:15,621 In August, 1929, with the eyes of the world focused on the Graf Zeppelin, 159 00:13:15,761 --> 00:13:19,356 Eckener piloted the airship across continents and oceans, 160 00:13:19,498 --> 00:13:23,093 flying thousands of miles on each leg of his journey. 161 00:13:24,136 --> 00:13:28,800 Oscar Fink was the helmsman on many of the Graf Zeppelin's flights. 162 00:13:31,043 --> 00:13:34,206 Well, it really was a great time then, 163 00:13:34,346 --> 00:13:38,840 an experience that didn't exist before-riding in an airship. 164 00:13:39,018 --> 00:13:42,977 You would see something of the world- not like today in an airplane, 165 00:13:43,122 --> 00:13:45,989 which flies at a height of 10,000 meters. 166 00:13:47,626 --> 00:13:50,789 It was practically a sea ship in the air. 167 00:13:52,064 --> 00:13:54,692 In the end, the Graf Zeppelin circled the globe 168 00:13:54,834 --> 00:14:00,033 in less than 300 hours of flying time, a little more than 12 days. 169 00:14:00,172 --> 00:14:03,164 Her triumphant achievement would make a lasting impression 170 00:14:03,309 --> 00:14:04,742 on those who saw her. 171 00:14:04,877 --> 00:14:06,674 I remember going up with my mother and father 172 00:14:06,812 --> 00:14:08,780 to the rooftop of the apartment house- 173 00:14:08,981 --> 00:14:12,417 we lived in New York City, just to go see the Graf. 174 00:14:13,586 --> 00:14:18,114 The country was seized by what was called Zeppelin fever. 175 00:14:24,163 --> 00:14:27,724 Hugo Eckener had proven what airships could do. 176 00:14:28,000 --> 00:14:30,992 When he landed at the Naval Air Station in Lakehurst, New Jersey, 177 00:14:31,136 --> 00:14:33,604 he received a hero's welcome. 178 00:14:44,817 --> 00:14:51,017 It was an achievement in technology and it was an adventure that had succeeded. 179 00:14:52,691 --> 00:14:56,320 Eckener was the toast of the town, treated to a ticker tape parade 180 00:14:56,462 --> 00:14:59,829 along Broadway just as Charles Lindbergh had been 181 00:14:59,965 --> 00:15:01,933 only two years before. 182 00:15:09,642 --> 00:15:15,046 Eckener was probably the most recognized face in modern civilization. 183 00:15:15,180 --> 00:15:18,616 He's very much like Neil Armstrong from that point of view. 184 00:15:18,751 --> 00:15:19,979 He's a world figure of world renown 185 00:15:20,119 --> 00:15:22,644 and if his name comes up in a conversation, 186 00:15:22,788 --> 00:15:25,552 it's like everybody knows who you're talking about. 187 00:15:27,126 --> 00:15:31,722 Hugo Eckener and his airship had captured the world's imagination. 188 00:15:31,864 --> 00:15:36,801 The record-breaking flight was even commemorated in a children's board game 189 00:15:40,439 --> 00:15:43,374 The Graf Zeppelin soon embarked on a regular route 190 00:15:43,509 --> 00:15:45,374 between Europe and the Americas. 191 00:15:45,511 --> 00:15:49,447 It was history's first regular transatlantic airliner. 192 00:15:51,016 --> 00:15:55,453 But back in Germany, a more sinister figure was rising to prominence. 193 00:15:58,557 --> 00:16:02,687 Adolf Hitler and his Nazi followers enjoyed growing support. 194 00:16:02,828 --> 00:16:08,027 In a few years, they would transform Germany and push Europe toward war. 195 00:16:12,538 --> 00:16:15,530 But for now, the head of the Zeppelin Company enjoyed the freedom 196 00:16:15,674 --> 00:16:21,010 to pursue a new dream: Hugo Eckener envisioned a new airship 197 00:16:21,680 --> 00:16:24,342 much bigger than any of its predecessors. 198 00:16:24,483 --> 00:16:27,281 This would be the Hindenburg. 199 00:16:28,420 --> 00:16:31,253 It would feature the latest advances in engineering 200 00:16:31,390 --> 00:16:35,554 and it would carry 50 passengers in safety and comfort. 201 00:16:35,694 --> 00:16:39,528 It would truly be a luxury liner in the sky. 202 00:16:42,167 --> 00:16:47,400 At 804 feet, Hindenburg would dwarf today's jumbo jets. 203 00:16:47,539 --> 00:16:50,133 It would be almost as long as the Titanic- 204 00:16:50,275 --> 00:16:53,039 the largest passenger liner of its day. 205 00:16:53,679 --> 00:16:57,672 Building something this huge and being certain that it could fly 206 00:16:57,816 --> 00:17:01,809 was an enormous challenge for Zeppelin's designers and engineers. 207 00:17:04,523 --> 00:17:07,754 As with all dirigibles, the heart of this leviathan 208 00:17:07,960 --> 00:17:11,623 and the secret of its flight was its lifting gas. 209 00:17:12,531 --> 00:17:17,400 Along its central axis, enormous gas cells would rest end to end, 210 00:17:17,536 --> 00:17:20,471 taking up almost its entire volume. 211 00:17:20,873 --> 00:17:25,037 They would be filled with seven million cubic feet of hydrogen. 212 00:17:26,078 --> 00:17:29,343 A rigid framework would be needed to support them. 213 00:17:31,717 --> 00:17:34,413 It would have to be strong, but lightweight. 214 00:17:34,553 --> 00:17:37,784 The material of choice: an aluminum alloy. 215 00:17:44,229 --> 00:17:47,630 To separate the gas cells: gigantic O-Rings, 216 00:17:47,766 --> 00:17:49,996 some more than a hundred feet in diameter, 217 00:17:50,135 --> 00:17:52,660 as big as a carnival ferris wheel. 218 00:17:55,207 --> 00:17:59,906 Now the pieces can be assembled, in a custom-built construction shed. 219 00:18:02,714 --> 00:18:04,614 After more than three years of work, 220 00:18:04,750 --> 00:18:07,981 the giant airship is beginning to take shape. 221 00:18:19,098 --> 00:18:21,828 Around the frame: her outer surface is covered with 222 00:18:21,967 --> 00:18:27,701 750,000 square feet of fabric, painstakingly stitched together. 223 00:18:29,341 --> 00:18:33,641 To protect the cotton cloth from corrosion by saltwater and wind, 224 00:18:33,779 --> 00:18:38,682 and to reflect the sun's heat, it's painted with a metallic doping compound. 225 00:18:39,184 --> 00:18:41,084 It's an incendiary mixture, 226 00:18:41,220 --> 00:18:44,451 but it's standard procedure in airship construction. 227 00:18:45,591 --> 00:18:48,116 Finally, the gas cells can be filled. 228 00:18:48,260 --> 00:18:51,752 Eckener's first choice is nonflammable helium, 229 00:18:51,897 --> 00:18:54,297 but the Americans have a monopoly on helium, 230 00:18:54,433 --> 00:18:58,665 and refuse to sell this strategic resource to a potential enemy. 231 00:18:58,804 --> 00:19:02,604 So he is forced to fill the Hindenburg with hydrogen. 232 00:19:10,048 --> 00:19:15,543 March 1936: The new airship is ready for her maiden flight. 233 00:19:28,300 --> 00:19:30,325 With her first public appearances, 234 00:19:30,469 --> 00:19:35,338 it was clear that there had never been anything quite like the Hindenburg. 235 00:19:36,708 --> 00:19:38,573 Streamlined and elegant, 236 00:19:38,710 --> 00:19:43,306 she was a technical marvel and a masterpiece of design. 237 00:19:52,891 --> 00:19:55,485 As she floated gracefully off the ground, 238 00:19:55,627 --> 00:19:58,721 Hugo Eckener basked in the glory. 239 00:20:04,069 --> 00:20:08,631 The Nazis would view his new airship as a stunning symbol of German might. 240 00:20:08,774 --> 00:20:12,335 Though Eckener himself was no friend of the Nazi government, 241 00:20:12,477 --> 00:20:15,241 one of Hindenburg's first flights was ordered up by 242 00:20:15,380 --> 00:20:18,713 Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels himself: 243 00:20:18,850 --> 00:20:22,115 an aerial tour of the country's largest cities. 244 00:20:25,557 --> 00:20:29,926 But the Hindenburg's primary function was to transport passengers, 245 00:20:30,062 --> 00:20:32,189 and within days of her maiden flight, 246 00:20:32,331 --> 00:20:36,097 she made her debut in the transatlantic airship service. 247 00:20:39,271 --> 00:20:44,072 One of her crewmen was Werner Franz, who was hired as a cabin boy. 248 00:20:45,110 --> 00:20:48,011 I was 14 years old the first time I saw the ship. 249 00:20:49,014 --> 00:20:51,539 When I entered the hangar, I didn't know where the ship was. 250 00:20:52,251 --> 00:20:54,378 All I could see was a grey wall. 251 00:20:55,621 --> 00:20:59,250 I looked left and right, until it became clear to me that 252 00:20:59,391 --> 00:21:01,951 I was standing right in front of it. 253 00:21:02,427 --> 00:21:04,156 I saw only a part of the ship. 254 00:21:05,731 --> 00:21:10,225 You had to walk to the front and the back just to take in the whole thing. 255 00:21:11,637 --> 00:21:15,437 Of course, I walked through every inch of the ship when I wasn't working. 256 00:21:16,608 --> 00:21:18,974 My favorite spot, when I had the time, 257 00:21:19,077 --> 00:21:21,978 was all the way in the front, in the bow. 258 00:21:22,881 --> 00:21:27,113 There was a little area with a table and some small benches and a window 259 00:21:27,252 --> 00:21:29,982 where I could see the whole panorama in front of me. 260 00:21:30,922 --> 00:21:33,049 That was my favorite spot. 261 00:21:40,032 --> 00:21:42,057 I couldn't pull myself away from the window. 262 00:21:42,534 --> 00:21:45,002 I was sorry when I had to do some work. 263 00:21:47,406 --> 00:21:51,502 A cabin boy could appreciate the thrill of flying on the Hindenburg, 264 00:21:51,643 --> 00:21:54,043 but the best views were from the passengers' deck, 265 00:21:54,179 --> 00:21:56,044 inside the hull of the airship. 266 00:21:56,181 --> 00:21:59,309 One of the youngest passengers was Elizabeth Kotter. 267 00:22:02,187 --> 00:22:05,122 I was 11 years old when I was fortunate enough 268 00:22:05,257 --> 00:22:08,055 to fly to Germany on the Hindenburg. 269 00:22:08,193 --> 00:22:10,753 That was an overwhelming experience, 270 00:22:10,896 --> 00:22:15,765 to enter into this big ship, and to sail away into the clouds. 271 00:22:18,070 --> 00:22:21,096 It was immense. It was enormous. 272 00:22:21,239 --> 00:22:25,403 And it was somewhat overwhelming, especially for a child. 273 00:22:25,777 --> 00:22:28,974 And one would get caught up in the general euphoria. 274 00:22:33,518 --> 00:22:37,181 Life on board was just like daily life at home. 275 00:22:37,322 --> 00:22:41,884 Breakfast would be served very nicely, just like in a big hotel. 276 00:22:42,461 --> 00:22:47,160 The meals were very good, and you would look forward to what was on the menu. 277 00:22:50,635 --> 00:22:55,197 The Hindenburg's chefs turned out gourmet meals served on fine china, 278 00:22:55,340 --> 00:22:58,207 and accompanied by French and German wines. 279 00:22:58,343 --> 00:23:02,643 Alfred Grozinger recalls the time he spent working in the airship's kitchen. 280 00:23:04,750 --> 00:23:09,153 When I got onto the Hindenburg I was 19 years old and, as a cook, 281 00:23:09,287 --> 00:23:13,087 I made all the voyages from the first to the last. 282 00:23:16,828 --> 00:23:20,127 We did our utmost to make everybody happy. 283 00:23:20,265 --> 00:23:24,429 Whether it was the crew or the passengers, we did what we could, 284 00:23:24,569 --> 00:23:25,627 and I would contend that 285 00:23:25,771 --> 00:23:29,138 none of the passengers had anything to complain about. 286 00:23:29,574 --> 00:23:32,566 They were very satisfied with the food. 287 00:23:33,445 --> 00:23:34,776 They were only worried that 288 00:23:34,913 --> 00:23:37,973 they'd gained too much weight during their trip. 289 00:23:39,818 --> 00:23:42,981 After dinner, passengers could enjoy drinks in the lounge 290 00:23:43,121 --> 00:23:46,522 and musical entertainment around its specially-designed piano 291 00:23:46,658 --> 00:23:49,491 constructed of aluminum to save weight. 292 00:23:53,465 --> 00:23:56,491 Next door to the lounge was the reading and writing room, 293 00:23:56,635 --> 00:24:00,093 where passengers could enjoy a quiet hour with a book. 294 00:24:04,709 --> 00:24:07,234 There was a typewriter for the inevitable reporters 295 00:24:07,379 --> 00:24:11,509 and private desks where travelers could write to their loved ones back home. 296 00:24:14,419 --> 00:24:17,047 Mail could even be posted from the Hindenburg, 297 00:24:17,189 --> 00:24:20,522 which maintained a working post office in flight. 298 00:24:23,995 --> 00:24:29,160 The Hindenburg rivaled the best ocean liners in comfort and amenities. 299 00:24:29,301 --> 00:24:33,635 Most of the passenger rooms were doubles- efficient, but comfortable. 300 00:24:39,444 --> 00:24:41,503 And if you were willing to pay a premium, 301 00:24:41,646 --> 00:24:45,013 you could enjoy the luxury of a private stateroom. 302 00:24:45,350 --> 00:24:46,977 But luxury didn't come cheap. 303 00:24:47,052 --> 00:24:50,510 A ticket on the Hindenburg cost $400 each way- 304 00:24:50,655 --> 00:24:54,022 more than $4,000 in today's currency. 305 00:24:56,595 --> 00:24:57,357 Amazingly, 306 00:24:57,496 --> 00:25:01,523 despite the proximity of millions of cubic feet of flammable hydrogen, 307 00:25:01,666 --> 00:25:06,569 the Hindenburg also featured a smoking room-isolated by an airlock 308 00:25:06,705 --> 00:25:09,538 and equipped with a single electric lighter. 309 00:25:13,812 --> 00:25:16,940 But for most passengers, it was the observation windows 310 00:25:17,048 --> 00:25:21,144 on the promenade deck that provided the greatest attraction. 311 00:25:21,286 --> 00:25:25,086 Coasting along at 80 miles an hour, less than 800 feet up, 312 00:25:25,223 --> 00:25:28,192 the views were incredible. 313 00:25:39,304 --> 00:25:42,000 There was always something new to look at. 314 00:25:42,140 --> 00:25:45,041 You could see fishes or an ocean liner. 315 00:25:45,176 --> 00:25:47,303 That was a major event. 316 00:25:53,084 --> 00:25:56,611 Edith Dieckmann was married to a Zeppelin Company physicist. 317 00:25:56,755 --> 00:25:58,814 She and her husband joined Hugo Eckener 318 00:25:59,024 --> 00:26:01,993 on the Hindenburg's first transatlantic crossing 319 00:26:02,127 --> 00:26:05,995 and she recalls an unusual encounter with a passing ship. 320 00:26:10,068 --> 00:26:13,936 The captain of the ocean liner made contact with Dr. Eckener, 321 00:26:14,005 --> 00:26:16,940 and asked him if he would deviate from the route 322 00:26:17,075 --> 00:26:23,503 in order to fly over the ship, and Dr. Captain Eckener, of course, agreed. 323 00:26:23,648 --> 00:26:27,311 He even lowered a bottle of champagne down to the ship, 324 00:26:27,452 --> 00:26:32,754 and the first one broke, but the second time he tried it, it worked. 325 00:26:38,797 --> 00:26:42,130 For the crew, the thrill of flying on the Hindenburg was matched 326 00:26:42,267 --> 00:26:45,794 by the excitement of visiting ports of call like New York. 327 00:26:48,673 --> 00:26:51,403 I was just fascinated by the skyscrapers. 328 00:26:51,543 --> 00:26:54,376 The European cities, compared to New York, 329 00:26:54,512 --> 00:26:56,980 were really just provincial cities. 330 00:26:57,048 --> 00:27:00,313 This was something completely different. 331 00:27:00,785 --> 00:27:03,549 Eugen Bentele was a mechanic on the Hindenburg. 332 00:27:03,688 --> 00:27:08,250 He and his fellow crew members were treated like heroes wherever they went. 333 00:27:08,593 --> 00:27:12,689 Bentele remembers one occasion when he hitched a ride to New York City 334 00:27:12,831 --> 00:27:14,958 and ran into a little trouble. 335 00:27:16,234 --> 00:27:21,262 Just before we got to Holland Tunnels, my driver must have made a wrong turn. 336 00:27:21,973 --> 00:27:25,534 There was this whistling sound-uh-oh, the police. 337 00:27:26,177 --> 00:27:30,978 And we pulled over, and the policeman was all ready to write us out a ticket. 338 00:27:31,116 --> 00:27:36,144 Then the driver said to him, "I have a man from the Hindenburg," 339 00:27:36,287 --> 00:27:38,050 and he waved us off. 340 00:27:45,230 --> 00:27:48,028 And I would imagine that perhaps only the astronauts, 341 00:27:48,166 --> 00:27:50,691 who flew around the world in 90 minutes, 342 00:27:50,835 --> 00:27:53,326 could have had a stronger impression. 343 00:27:58,209 --> 00:28:00,905 It was a wonderful way of traveling. 344 00:28:00,979 --> 00:28:04,915 And I have to say, it was the most beautiful way of traveling 345 00:28:05,016 --> 00:28:07,541 that I ever experienced in my life. 346 00:28:10,088 --> 00:28:15,390 Besides being beautiful, the Hindenburg was promoted as being perfectly safe. 347 00:28:15,527 --> 00:28:21,397 I am convinced that under all weather conditions, even the most unfavorable, 348 00:28:21,533 --> 00:28:29,963 we will be able to make the flight in all regularity and safety. Thank you. 349 00:28:47,525 --> 00:28:49,789 By the spring of 1937, 350 00:28:49,994 --> 00:28:54,556 as Hitler continued his military buildup and aggressive foreign policy, 351 00:28:54,699 --> 00:28:57,293 many Europeans were becoming increasingly nervous 352 00:28:57,435 --> 00:28:59,494 about the possibility of war. 353 00:29:02,140 --> 00:29:05,667 That may explain why ticket sales for the Hindenburg were down 354 00:29:05,810 --> 00:29:07,471 from the year before. 355 00:29:07,746 --> 00:29:11,375 There had also been a series of bomb threats in recent days. 356 00:29:11,516 --> 00:29:13,677 Nevertheless, on May 3, 357 00:29:13,818 --> 00:29:18,255 the inaugural flight of the Hindenburg's second season proceeded on schedule. 358 00:29:20,792 --> 00:29:22,953 Hugo Eckener wasn't on board, 359 00:29:23,094 --> 00:29:26,154 but his heir apparent, Ernst Lehmann, was. 360 00:29:26,297 --> 00:29:28,731 It promised to be a routine flight. 361 00:29:29,300 --> 00:29:34,704 The airship took off with 97 people aboard, including 36 passengers. 362 00:29:34,839 --> 00:29:38,468 One of them was Burtis Dolan, a perfume company executive, 363 00:29:38,610 --> 00:29:43,104 returning home to his wife Mildred, after a four-month buying trip. 364 00:29:43,248 --> 00:29:47,582 Anxious about his flying on the Hindenburg, she had urged him to sail. 365 00:29:47,719 --> 00:29:51,621 So he wrote to her, apologizing for ignoring her wishes. 366 00:29:52,157 --> 00:29:55,490 Not that I fear in any respect the safety of the journey. 367 00:29:55,627 --> 00:29:58,653 There is less risk than ordinary flying. 368 00:29:58,797 --> 00:30:01,698 Of course, Precious, none of us know the lord's will, 369 00:30:01,833 --> 00:30:06,395 and if anything should happen to me en route, it will be too late to regret. 370 00:30:11,209 --> 00:30:15,908 The crossing was uneventful, except for unusually strong headwinds. 371 00:30:16,047 --> 00:30:20,450 By the afternoon of May 6th, the airship was 12 hours late. 372 00:30:20,585 --> 00:30:24,112 One of those who remembers its approach is Alice Taylor. 373 00:30:25,123 --> 00:30:30,459 I had taken my mother to Asbury Park, that was a seaside resort, 374 00:30:30,595 --> 00:30:33,462 to shop for a birthday present. 375 00:30:33,598 --> 00:30:40,162 It was almost time for the store to close, it was nearly 6:00, and Mother and I stopped. 376 00:30:40,305 --> 00:30:42,865 When we looked out the window, to our surprise, 377 00:30:43,007 --> 00:30:48,309 we saw coming directly toward us through the clouds, the Hindenburg. 378 00:30:48,646 --> 00:30:51,706 That sight I'll never, never forget. 379 00:30:51,850 --> 00:30:53,249 I remember saying to my mother, 380 00:30:53,384 --> 00:30:57,878 "Oh, I would love to give you a ride on her for your birthday present." 381 00:30:58,022 --> 00:31:03,358 She laughed and said, "Oh, but those on that ship are the rich and the famous. 382 00:31:03,494 --> 00:31:05,962 But that's a beautiful thought. 383 00:31:06,064 --> 00:31:08,089 I'll dream about it." 384 00:31:09,868 --> 00:31:14,703 The Hindenburg had been scheduled to land at Lakehurst, New Jersey at 4:00. 385 00:31:14,839 --> 00:31:17,569 But her landing would be delayed further. 386 00:31:20,011 --> 00:31:22,104 It was a completely ordinary trip. 387 00:31:22,247 --> 00:31:24,715 Just like always, sometimes there was bad weather, 388 00:31:24,849 --> 00:31:26,180 sometimes good weather. 389 00:31:26,317 --> 00:31:28,217 But when we arrived at the airfield, 390 00:31:28,353 --> 00:31:31,322 the entire area was filled with thunderstorms. 391 00:31:34,659 --> 00:31:38,993 We were going to have to fly around in circles for about two hours, 392 00:31:39,130 --> 00:31:42,361 I think, before we would be allowed to land. 393 00:31:44,736 --> 00:31:49,139 Verna Thomas lived just a few miles from the Naval Air Station at Lakehurst. 394 00:31:49,274 --> 00:31:51,834 All day long, this was all you heard on the radio- 395 00:31:52,043 --> 00:31:54,603 about the Hindenburg being still delayed. 396 00:31:54,746 --> 00:31:58,204 Around evening, when the word had come through that the ship 397 00:31:58,349 --> 00:32:00,977 was gonna come into Lakehurst, my husband, he says, 398 00:32:01,119 --> 00:32:06,022 "Let's go up and get into the station and see it for good." 399 00:32:08,259 --> 00:32:11,626 On the ground, crowds had gathered as usual. 400 00:32:11,763 --> 00:32:14,994 Print reporters and newsreel cameramen were standing by. 401 00:32:16,534 --> 00:32:19,628 Even a radio announcer was covering the event. 402 00:32:19,771 --> 00:32:22,137 We're greeting you now from the Naval Air Base at Lakehurst, New Jersey, 403 00:32:22,273 --> 00:32:24,241 from which point we're going to bring you a description of the landing 404 00:32:24,375 --> 00:32:26,741 of the mammoth airship, Hindenburg. 405 00:32:26,878 --> 00:32:29,176 It was 7:15 p.m. 406 00:32:29,314 --> 00:32:32,841 The storms had all but ended and the Hindenburg was cleared 407 00:32:33,017 --> 00:32:34,541 for its final approach. 408 00:32:34,686 --> 00:32:37,553 Here it comes, ladies and gentlemen, and what a great sight it is. 409 00:32:37,689 --> 00:32:39,987 A thrilling one, it's a marvelous sight, 410 00:32:40,058 --> 00:32:41,491 coming down out of the sky, 411 00:32:41,626 --> 00:32:44,459 pointed directly toward us and toward the mooring mast. 412 00:32:45,363 --> 00:32:47,024 Her mighty motors just roared 413 00:32:47,165 --> 00:32:51,397 and throwing it back into a gyre-like whirlpool. 414 00:32:54,038 --> 00:32:57,667 All of a sudden, there came a call: Six men to the front, 415 00:32:57,809 --> 00:33:00,937 because the ship was too light at the front. 416 00:33:01,012 --> 00:33:05,142 I stayed halfway between the pilot's cabin and the bow. 417 00:33:05,283 --> 00:33:07,717 There was a hole somewhere there. 418 00:33:07,852 --> 00:33:11,948 And I thought, "Well, I'll just lie down here on the support beam 419 00:33:12,023 --> 00:33:14,218 and I'll watch the landing." 420 00:33:18,496 --> 00:33:21,988 During the landing maneuver, I was busy at the motor, 421 00:33:22,133 --> 00:33:25,967 so I could observe everything exactly as it happened. 422 00:33:27,205 --> 00:33:30,641 And I thought perhaps they had brought the ship down too hard, 423 00:33:30,775 --> 00:33:34,438 too fast, and that something was torn or ripped. 424 00:33:36,314 --> 00:33:37,542 And so I looked out, 425 00:33:37,682 --> 00:33:42,619 and I saw that the ship from the stern back to the first motor was on fire. 426 00:33:48,526 --> 00:33:49,424 It burst into flames. 427 00:33:49,560 --> 00:33:51,050 Get this Scotty, get this, Scotty. 428 00:33:51,195 --> 00:33:52,992 It's terrible. 429 00:33:53,064 --> 00:33:54,998 Oh, my! Get out of the way, please! 430 00:34:00,471 --> 00:34:03,031 My father said, "My God, it's on fire. 431 00:34:03,174 --> 00:34:05,938 Run!" We watched it burn. 432 00:34:06,044 --> 00:34:08,137 We could see people jumping out. 433 00:34:08,279 --> 00:34:11,544 It didn't look like anybody could possibly survive. 434 00:34:15,720 --> 00:34:18,484 I can't really remember the collision, 435 00:34:18,623 --> 00:34:23,993 so I know that the ship must have hit the ground with a very hard jolt. 436 00:34:24,996 --> 00:34:29,092 I regained consciousness and then I quickly began to run away 437 00:34:29,233 --> 00:34:31,394 from the side of the motor. 438 00:34:33,771 --> 00:34:35,261 But there was a stream of heat 439 00:34:35,406 --> 00:34:38,603 coming from the enormous flames above the ship. 440 00:34:40,211 --> 00:34:45,649 Then, while I was running away, I thought my clothes were on fire. 441 00:34:46,317 --> 00:34:49,480 I put my hand up to my neck to try and protect it, 442 00:34:49,620 --> 00:34:52,748 and instead of my neck getting burned, my hand was burned. 443 00:34:54,759 --> 00:34:58,092 I thought to myself: "Now this is the end. 444 00:34:58,229 --> 00:35:00,595 I can't survive the end." 445 00:35:00,731 --> 00:35:02,699 And then it happened like this: 446 00:35:02,834 --> 00:35:09,501 I came down nearly perpendicular with my legs and landed in some sandy soil. 447 00:35:09,640 --> 00:35:14,077 But almost immediately, I got up again and I ran away. 448 00:35:14,579 --> 00:35:18,174 I was lucky, because I was running against the wind, 449 00:35:18,316 --> 00:35:22,343 so none of the flames from the fire were behind me. 450 00:35:24,989 --> 00:35:28,982 And the thing that impressed me was the intense noise 451 00:35:29,127 --> 00:35:32,062 created by the collapsing of the fabric covering 452 00:35:32,196 --> 00:35:37,099 and the roar of the flames was just a horrendous noise. 453 00:35:43,474 --> 00:35:47,740 In front of me, maybe I was lucky, a water tank exploded, 454 00:35:47,879 --> 00:35:51,178 and perhaps it was the water that protected me from the heat. 455 00:35:51,916 --> 00:35:55,010 Now I could make my way to the door and I kicked it open. 456 00:35:55,586 --> 00:36:00,387 I could already see the ground coming towards me and I jumped out. 457 00:36:07,965 --> 00:36:09,830 I didn't think about anything. 458 00:36:09,967 --> 00:36:11,400 My mind didn't start working again 459 00:36:11,536 --> 00:36:14,437 until I was back on the ground and I started running. 460 00:36:15,373 --> 00:36:20,436 And then after awhile it came to me: And I lost my nerve and I cried. 461 00:36:20,578 --> 00:36:22,705 I wailed like a baby. 462 00:36:22,847 --> 00:36:25,782 I didn't know what to do until a couple of crew members came up to me 463 00:36:25,983 --> 00:36:29,475 and shook me to my senses and said, "Get a hold of yourself. 464 00:36:29,620 --> 00:36:35,252 Try to help somebody." But there was no one left to help. 465 00:36:38,262 --> 00:36:40,230 It's a terrific crash, ladies and gentlemen. 466 00:36:40,364 --> 00:36:44,664 The smoke and the flames, and the plane is crashing to the ground, 467 00:36:44,802 --> 00:36:46,770 not quite to the mooring mast. 468 00:36:46,904 --> 00:36:50,704 Oh, the humanity and all the passengers. 469 00:36:50,841 --> 00:36:52,638 I don't... 470 00:36:52,777 --> 00:36:56,508 I have people and friends out there. 471 00:36:56,647 --> 00:36:59,582 It's... 472 00:36:59,717 --> 00:37:02,277 I can't talk, ladies and gentlemen... 473 00:37:02,420 --> 00:37:05,116 Honestly, it's like mess... 474 00:37:23,608 --> 00:37:27,738 It started from the tail end between the two fins, 475 00:37:27,878 --> 00:37:32,008 and went into the middle and the forward section. 476 00:37:32,149 --> 00:37:35,084 Within five seconds, it was all on fire. 477 00:37:35,987 --> 00:37:41,857 The explosion was so bad and the fire was so heavy at that particular time. 478 00:37:41,993 --> 00:37:46,054 I guess it looked like hell; it was like hell on fire. 479 00:37:48,199 --> 00:37:52,226 The ground crew and the people that did dare to go back, 480 00:37:52,370 --> 00:37:56,033 they were helping to pull bodies out. 481 00:38:01,779 --> 00:38:06,045 Two American Navy soldiers grabbed me and they took me to an ambulance. 482 00:38:06,183 --> 00:38:10,119 And then little by little, five or six more people came. 483 00:38:10,554 --> 00:38:13,284 One of them was Max Pruss. 484 00:38:13,424 --> 00:38:19,192 He had no nose anymore-nothing there, no eyebrows, no ears. 485 00:38:19,330 --> 00:38:23,130 Everything was burned off. He was burned. 486 00:38:31,676 --> 00:38:36,136 When I arrived there, the dirigible was still burning. 487 00:38:36,280 --> 00:38:40,046 Raymond Taylor was one of the first doctors to reach the crash site. 488 00:38:40,184 --> 00:38:46,953 I tried to identify some of the corpses right away, 489 00:38:47,058 --> 00:38:49,959 but some of them could not be immediately identified 490 00:38:50,094 --> 00:38:52,358 because they were so badly burned. 491 00:38:52,496 --> 00:39:02,098 Also, a Jewish doctor, Dr. Adolf Tobin, asked me if he could take care of 492 00:39:02,239 --> 00:39:07,108 Captain Lehmann, who was in charge of the ship. 493 00:39:07,244 --> 00:39:10,975 His reason for wanting to take care of him, 494 00:39:11,115 --> 00:39:13,606 because he wanted to show Hitler and the German people, 495 00:39:13,751 --> 00:39:18,211 that he was very friendly toward them and that the German people 496 00:39:18,356 --> 00:39:24,317 should be aware that the Jews were taking care of the injured, 497 00:39:24,462 --> 00:39:26,589 and they should appreciate it. 498 00:39:29,166 --> 00:39:31,930 But no doctor could save Captain Lehmann. 499 00:39:32,069 --> 00:39:34,094 He would die of his injuries. 500 00:39:34,238 --> 00:39:36,172 And so would Burtis Dolan. 501 00:39:36,307 --> 00:39:37,069 In Dolan's pocket, 502 00:39:37,208 --> 00:39:39,938 they found the charred letter he had written to his wife, 503 00:39:40,077 --> 00:39:42,170 but never had a chance to mail. 504 00:39:45,716 --> 00:39:49,174 It had taken just half a minute from the first signs of trouble 505 00:39:49,320 --> 00:39:51,288 to the fiery crash. 506 00:39:51,422 --> 00:39:55,950 Now, 36 passengers and crew members were dead or dying mostly 507 00:39:56,026 --> 00:39:58,494 from burns and smoke inhalation. 508 00:39:59,497 --> 00:40:03,456 Miraculously, two-thirds of those on board survived. 509 00:40:12,877 --> 00:40:18,110 My view of it all was entirely different from the destruction. 510 00:40:18,249 --> 00:40:24,279 Mine was that beautiful thing in the air and that's what I like to remember. 511 00:40:25,289 --> 00:40:26,756 I've seen the other ships, 512 00:40:26,891 --> 00:40:32,352 but this was sort of the first cause of excitement like that. 513 00:40:33,297 --> 00:40:38,599 Maybe it was made more so because of the tragedy. 514 00:40:46,911 --> 00:40:47,570 The next morning, 515 00:40:47,711 --> 00:40:52,410 Americans awoke to screaming headlines and terrifying photographs. 516 00:40:53,751 --> 00:40:58,552 For the first time, every detail of a disaster was recorded as it happened, 517 00:40:58,689 --> 00:41:01,385 and relayed to a shocked public. 518 00:41:02,993 --> 00:41:06,724 Adolf Hitler sent a personal telegram to President Roosevelt, 519 00:41:06,864 --> 00:41:09,662 thanking him and the American people for their help 520 00:41:09,800 --> 00:41:12,030 in dealing with the casualties. 521 00:41:13,571 --> 00:41:16,506 In New York, the German ambassador made hasty arrangements 522 00:41:16,640 --> 00:41:20,235 for the bodies of his countrymen to be returned to the Fatherland. 523 00:41:21,178 --> 00:41:24,807 Their flag-draped coffins would lie in state on a Manhattan pier, 524 00:41:25,015 --> 00:41:28,314 as local German citizens paid their respects. 525 00:41:31,121 --> 00:41:35,057 Then the dead were shipped home on board the liner Hamburg. 526 00:41:37,428 --> 00:41:42,388 But back in Berlin, the government faced more than an aircraft disaster. 527 00:41:42,533 --> 00:41:45,696 This was a public relations catastrophe. 528 00:41:45,836 --> 00:41:49,533 The Nazis saw it as a slap in the face of German technology, 529 00:41:49,673 --> 00:41:52,267 and so it didn't enter the newspapers. 530 00:41:52,409 --> 00:41:54,206 It was sort of like on the bottom of the page: 531 00:41:54,345 --> 00:41:56,506 "There was a crash of the airship Hindenburg. 532 00:41:56,647 --> 00:41:57,477 And so many people died. 533 00:41:57,615 --> 00:42:00,345 And here's the survivor's list." That was about it. 534 00:42:01,785 --> 00:42:05,551 Even the film footage was not allowed to be shown in Germany to the public, 535 00:42:05,689 --> 00:42:09,682 and most people didn't get to see it until after the war. 536 00:42:14,231 --> 00:42:17,530 Besides the shock of the tragedy, and the embarrassment, 537 00:42:17,668 --> 00:42:19,761 there were questions waiting to be answered, 538 00:42:19,904 --> 00:42:22,600 about what could have caused this disaster. 539 00:42:24,174 --> 00:42:27,075 German airships had carried thousands of passengers 540 00:42:27,211 --> 00:42:30,977 more than a million miles-in perfect safety. 541 00:42:31,048 --> 00:42:34,814 Was the Hindenburg brought down by an act of sabotage? 542 00:42:36,020 --> 00:42:38,181 As a symbol of the Nazi regime, 543 00:42:38,322 --> 00:42:41,985 it may have been a tempting target for opponents of Hitler. 544 00:42:43,694 --> 00:42:45,161 Some have even suggested that 545 00:42:45,296 --> 00:42:48,288 Hitler may have ordered the airship's destruction himself, 546 00:42:48,432 --> 00:42:52,994 perhaps in retaliation for Hugo Eckener's anti-Nazi statements. 547 00:42:53,103 --> 00:42:57,665 But no solid evidence was ever found to support either of these notions. 548 00:42:59,910 --> 00:43:01,935 Just four days after the crash, 549 00:43:02,012 --> 00:43:04,947 the Commerce Department convened a hearing at Lakehurst, 550 00:43:05,015 --> 00:43:06,949 to examine the evidence. 551 00:43:07,084 --> 00:43:10,019 Hugo Eckener headed the German delegation. 552 00:43:13,991 --> 00:43:16,118 In the end, the Commission concluded that 553 00:43:16,260 --> 00:43:18,956 the crash was an unfortunate accident, 554 00:43:19,063 --> 00:43:22,157 caused by a discharge of static electricity, 555 00:43:22,299 --> 00:43:25,359 igniting a leak from one of the airship's gas cells, 556 00:43:25,502 --> 00:43:28,665 and touching off an explosive hydrogen fire. 557 00:43:33,377 --> 00:43:38,144 But decades later, a new theory would emerge to challenge these findings. 558 00:43:40,117 --> 00:43:43,211 Addison Bain is a retired engineer, 559 00:43:43,354 --> 00:43:46,653 the former head of Hydrogen Programs for NASA. 560 00:43:49,827 --> 00:43:53,126 His expertise led him to question prevailing ideas 561 00:43:53,263 --> 00:43:55,595 about the Hindenburg disaster. 562 00:43:58,135 --> 00:44:00,729 Well, with my experience with hydrogen over the years, 563 00:44:00,871 --> 00:44:03,169 starting in about 1960, 564 00:44:03,307 --> 00:44:07,573 and designing systems and writing safety manuals and that type of thing. 565 00:44:07,711 --> 00:44:09,144 And I'd keep hearing about the Hindenburg, 566 00:44:09,279 --> 00:44:12,214 what about the Hindenburg, the hydrogen exploded. 567 00:44:12,349 --> 00:44:13,441 Well, it didn't. 568 00:44:14,284 --> 00:44:18,277 To Addison Bain's trained eye, the evidence was there all along, 569 00:44:18,422 --> 00:44:20,686 in the photographs of the disaster: 570 00:44:20,824 --> 00:44:23,384 The enormous fireball that consumed the airship 571 00:44:23,527 --> 00:44:26,087 could not have been produced by burning hydrogen. 572 00:44:26,230 --> 00:44:29,961 It was very apparent that it was a very brilliant fire. 573 00:44:30,100 --> 00:44:33,331 Again, that set my suspicions into motion 574 00:44:33,470 --> 00:44:37,804 because hydrogen generally burns with an invisible flame. 575 00:44:38,008 --> 00:44:41,444 Perhaps something else had fueled the Hindenburg fire. 576 00:44:41,578 --> 00:44:44,376 Why did this fire burn so hot and so fast? 577 00:44:44,515 --> 00:44:47,973 And fire investigators go off and look for so-called accelerants or chemicals 578 00:44:48,085 --> 00:44:52,044 and that kind of thing that may have contributed to this. 579 00:44:52,189 --> 00:44:58,560 And that's why I led off into the chemistry of the airship design, 580 00:44:58,696 --> 00:45:00,391 particularly the outer coating. 581 00:45:03,434 --> 00:45:05,766 To find out what might have fed the flames, 582 00:45:05,969 --> 00:45:10,372 Bain went to Germany and visited the Zeppelin Museum in Friedrichshafen. 583 00:45:10,507 --> 00:45:14,034 There, in the archives, among files of documents and blueprints, 584 00:45:14,178 --> 00:45:20,083 he found the construction diagrams for another airship-and an important clue. 585 00:45:20,217 --> 00:45:23,414 When I arrived and started going through drawings on the Hindenburg, 586 00:45:23,554 --> 00:45:27,046 I also found drawings on the LZ130, 587 00:45:27,191 --> 00:45:31,958 the sister ship of the Hindenburg- the Hindenburg, was LZ129. 588 00:45:32,096 --> 00:45:34,860 But the LZ130 had flown after the Hindenburg 589 00:45:34,998 --> 00:45:36,727 and it was exactly the same size. 590 00:45:36,867 --> 00:45:39,392 I came across one particular drawing 591 00:45:39,536 --> 00:45:42,369 that outlined the fabric covering of the hull. 592 00:45:42,506 --> 00:45:46,567 Now following down through the notes on the left hand side of this drawing, 593 00:45:46,710 --> 00:45:50,407 I come across notes on the doping process. 594 00:45:50,547 --> 00:45:52,538 They started off with a coat of iron oxide, 595 00:45:52,683 --> 00:45:55,982 very similar to the Hindenburg doping process, 596 00:45:56,086 --> 00:46:02,252 but then the next steps were coatings of powdered aluminum bronze, 597 00:46:02,392 --> 00:46:04,587 not just plain aluminum powder. 598 00:46:04,728 --> 00:46:07,128 I thought, "Ah-ha, this is interesting." 599 00:46:08,065 --> 00:46:09,930 To Addison Bain, it indicated that 600 00:46:10,067 --> 00:46:14,800 the airship's designers had serious questions about the doping compound 601 00:46:14,972 --> 00:46:16,940 used on the outer covering. 602 00:46:17,708 --> 00:46:19,403 They knew a number of problems. 603 00:46:19,543 --> 00:46:22,103 They did a number of modifications to their design, 604 00:46:22,246 --> 00:46:24,942 all because of the Hindenburg accident. 605 00:46:26,083 --> 00:46:28,574 But hydrogen had been blamed for the disaster, 606 00:46:28,719 --> 00:46:32,985 so why did Zeppelin company engineers focus instead on the fabric- 607 00:46:33,123 --> 00:46:35,557 struggling to make it more fire-resistant, 608 00:46:35,692 --> 00:46:38,957 and less likely to build up static electricity? 609 00:46:39,062 --> 00:46:41,792 Did they know more than they let on? 610 00:46:46,470 --> 00:46:49,564 To find out what was really responsible for the fire, 611 00:46:49,706 --> 00:46:52,231 Addison Bain would head into the laboratory. 612 00:46:53,710 --> 00:46:57,146 He had managed to secure some rare artifacts: 613 00:46:57,281 --> 00:47:00,182 actual shreds of the Hindenburg's skin. 614 00:47:04,688 --> 00:47:07,384 Placing a sample in an infrared spectrograph, 615 00:47:07,524 --> 00:47:11,290 Bain could analyze the doping compound on its surface. 616 00:47:11,428 --> 00:47:16,365 And when I discovered that the doping process that was used on airships, 617 00:47:16,500 --> 00:47:21,130 in general, uses a cellulose nitrate type compound, 618 00:47:21,271 --> 00:47:23,239 which was basically gunpowder, 619 00:47:23,373 --> 00:47:29,471 and then used a combination of powdered aluminum in the dopant process. 620 00:47:29,613 --> 00:47:30,545 And I said, "Well, you know, 621 00:47:30,681 --> 00:47:33,514 powdered aluminum is the fuel used on the space shuttle." 622 00:47:33,650 --> 00:47:35,675 So, here we have rocket fuel, we've got gunpowder. 623 00:47:35,819 --> 00:47:40,586 And I said to myself, "Well, there's gotta be more to this. 624 00:47:40,724 --> 00:47:42,589 They must have introduced some other chemicals 625 00:47:42,726 --> 00:47:45,422 to reduce the flammability characteristics." 626 00:47:46,363 --> 00:47:48,456 With a scanning electron microscope, 627 00:47:48,599 --> 00:47:51,830 Bain could inspect the skin at the molecular level. 628 00:47:52,436 --> 00:47:56,566 He found nothing that would have retarded the Hindenburg's flammability. 629 00:47:59,009 --> 00:48:00,408 But he did manage to learn exactly 630 00:48:00,544 --> 00:48:04,640 what the fabric was composed of and recreate it. 631 00:48:06,116 --> 00:48:08,983 With this new sample, he could find out what would happen 632 00:48:09,119 --> 00:48:12,680 if a flame or a spark made contact with the fabric. 633 00:48:13,323 --> 00:48:20,923 What I'm gonna do is burn a piece of the lab sample that I prepared earlier. 634 00:48:21,031 --> 00:48:26,663 First thing you'll notice, it doesn't self-extinguish, 635 00:48:26,803 --> 00:48:29,966 and it starts moving quite rapidly. 636 00:48:30,107 --> 00:48:34,441 Notice the colorization of it- typical carbon fire. 637 00:48:34,578 --> 00:48:37,240 And another feature that's very interesting is 638 00:48:37,381 --> 00:48:41,977 the effect of the aluminum against the iron oxide forms 639 00:48:42,119 --> 00:48:47,284 little balls of thermite- very highly reactive combination. 640 00:48:47,424 --> 00:48:51,292 Those thermite balls get up to 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit. 641 00:48:55,565 --> 00:49:00,298 Very simply, I believe that the cause of the Hindenburg fire 642 00:49:00,437 --> 00:49:04,237 was static electricity that was built up on the envelope. 643 00:49:04,374 --> 00:49:08,367 It found a path towards the frame, across the panels, 644 00:49:08,512 --> 00:49:12,608 and ignited the very, very sensitive aluminum powder. 645 00:49:12,749 --> 00:49:16,185 That, in combination with the iron oxide and other chemicals, 646 00:49:16,320 --> 00:49:18,550 was just a rapid chemical fire. 647 00:49:21,625 --> 00:49:25,721 If Addison Bain is right, then in spite of the official report, 648 00:49:25,862 --> 00:49:30,265 the fire that consumed the Hindenburg wasn't just an explosion of hydrogen. 649 00:49:30,400 --> 00:49:35,269 It was actually fueled by the flammable skin of the airship itself. 650 00:49:39,476 --> 00:49:42,411 But even if hydrogen wasn't entirely to blame, 651 00:49:42,546 --> 00:49:47,609 the Hindenburg disaster sounded the death knell for passenger airships. 652 00:49:48,986 --> 00:49:50,283 With the outbreak of war, 653 00:49:50,420 --> 00:49:54,413 Germany's last remaining airships were reduced to scrap. 654 00:49:56,159 --> 00:50:00,562 As for Hugo Eckener, his glory days were over, too. 655 00:50:01,264 --> 00:50:06,702 One of the world's most celebrated figures would quietly fade into history. 656 00:50:13,677 --> 00:50:17,113 Today, a subsidiary of the same company that built the Hindenburg 657 00:50:17,247 --> 00:50:20,375 is once again creating an airship. 658 00:50:24,888 --> 00:50:29,825 In a hangar at Friedrichshafen, the Zeppelin NT is taking shape. 659 00:50:30,527 --> 00:50:35,055 That shape may be familiar, but the technology is brand new. 660 00:50:35,665 --> 00:50:39,601 Scott Dannekar is testing this high-tech dirigible. 661 00:50:39,736 --> 00:50:43,729 The Hindenburg is like an albatross that has been thrown around our neck 662 00:50:43,874 --> 00:50:45,865 and we've been wearing it for the last 62 years. 663 00:50:46,009 --> 00:50:50,105 We have to overcome the stigma of the disaster and the failures of the past. 664 00:50:50,247 --> 00:50:52,841 We have to prove what an airship is capable of 665 00:50:52,983 --> 00:50:55,952 and we have to prove its success. 666 00:50:56,086 --> 00:50:57,314 And once we do that, 667 00:50:57,454 --> 00:51:00,082 then I think we're well on our way to restoring airships 668 00:51:00,223 --> 00:51:02,953 to the prominence that they used to have years ago. 669 00:51:06,997 --> 00:51:09,227 This is a very different kind of airship: 670 00:51:09,366 --> 00:51:13,325 It features electronic controls and computerized steering. 671 00:51:13,470 --> 00:51:16,598 Its semirigid design sets it apart from the familiar blimps 672 00:51:16,740 --> 00:51:18,401 we see at sporting events, 673 00:51:18,542 --> 00:51:21,272 but it's less than a third the size of the Hindenburg. 674 00:51:21,411 --> 00:51:24,574 And it's filled with helium, not hydrogen. 675 00:51:27,184 --> 00:51:31,086 If all goes well, the new Zeppelin will be used for tourist flights 676 00:51:31,221 --> 00:51:37,683 and scientific research-and perhaps as a vehicle for transporting passengers. 677 00:51:39,096 --> 00:51:41,257 Flying an airplane for me is a job. 678 00:51:41,398 --> 00:51:42,990 It's something that you have to do. 679 00:51:43,100 --> 00:51:46,866 Flying an airship is a joy. There's magic with these things. 680 00:51:47,037 --> 00:51:49,369 I think it's just the idea of a giant silver- 681 00:51:49,506 --> 00:51:52,669 or in this case white- airship just floating serenely above the countryside. 682 00:51:52,809 --> 00:51:57,041 There's just a magic there that for me is just personally indescribable. 683 00:52:00,884 --> 00:52:06,948 Is the Zeppelin NT the wave of the future or just a nostalgic daydream, 684 00:52:07,023 --> 00:52:10,459 a bid to recapture an elegant era? 685 00:52:17,734 --> 00:52:20,999 The golden age of airships may be long gone, 686 00:52:21,138 --> 00:52:25,700 but magnificent giants like the Hindenburg won't be forgotten. 687 00:52:25,842 --> 00:52:27,833 They'll fly on forever, 688 00:52:28,011 --> 00:52:32,072 floating majestically across the landscape of memory. 689 00:52:37,721 --> 00:52:39,985 I think everyone who ever worked with airships 690 00:52:40,123 --> 00:52:44,321 would really like to see one of those huge objects in the sky again. 691 00:52:49,533 --> 00:52:53,469 There's nothing more beautiful than flying in an airship. 692 00:52:53,603 --> 00:52:56,868 It's page one in the book of dreams.