LZ 72 (navy designation L 31) was an R Class super-Zeppelin airship of the Imperial German Navy. It was commanded by Kapitänleutnant Heinrich Mathy, an experienced commander, and took part in several raids over Britain in 1916 during the First World War before being shot down north of London.
Service
The first sortie of LZ 72 (L 31) was on the night of 28-29 July 1916, when it formed part of a raid on Britain with nine other new "Super Zeppelins", four of which returned early while the others, including L 31, found the ground was obscured by fog and returned to base at Nordholz. Subsequent raids on 31 July and 2 August only reached Kent because of high winds and came under fire by coastal batteries. On 8-9 August together with Zeppelin L 30, L 31 raided the northeast coast of England, damaging Kingston-upon-Hull.Castle p. 66 It also participated in a naval reconnaissance role during the Sunderland raid of 19 August 1916.Layman p. 182 On 24-25 August, L 31 formed part of a raid by thirteen naval Zeppelins, although it was the only one to reach London. Following the Thames in thick cloud, Heinrich Mathy in command dropped bombs near docks at the Isle of Dogs and Deptford before taking a circuitous route over southeast London, damaging houses in Greenwhich, Blackheath and Eltham. Nine civilians were killed and damage estimated at £130,000 was caused; L 31 was chased by three Royal Flying Corps aircraft but escaped damage until it suffered a heavy landing at base, putting it out of action for a month.Castle pp. 66-68 On 23-24 September, L 31 again reached London, this time bombing Mitcham, Streatham and Brixton in South London and Leyton in East London before returning; Mathy was apparently disorientated because he claimed to have bombed the West End and the City of London. Together with Zeppelin L 33 which was shot down, the raid killed 35, injured 113 and caused almost £65,000 worth of damage.Castle pp. 80-82
Its last flight was launched late at night on 1 October 1916, together with ten other naval Zeppelins. Several miles north of London, it was caught in searchlights and anti-aircraft fire. During this engagement, 2nd Lt. Wulstan J. Tempest was on patrol and spotted the zeppelin. He proceeded to engage the airship with incendiary rounds, causing the ship to burst into flames and crash in a field at Oakmere Park near Potter's Bar in Hertfordshire. The entire crew died, and were originally buried in Potters Bar, but were reinterred at Cannock Chase German Military Cemetery in the 1960s. After this disastrous crash, the Imperial German Navy began reducing the number of zeppelin raids.
Operators
Imperial German Navy
Specifications (LZ 72 / Type R zeppelin)
See also
List of Zeppelins
References
Books
Further reading