This is a complete list of Zeppelins constructed by the original German Zeppelin companies from 1900 until 1938. Other types of rigid airships that are also sometimes referred to as zeppelins are not included.
The Zeppelin companies based in Friedrichshafen, Germany, numbered their aircraft LZ1/2/..., with LZ standing for "Luftschiff [airship] Zeppelin". Additionally, crafts used for civilian purposes usually got a name, while military airships, on the other hand, were given "tactical numbering":
The German Army called its first Zeppelins Z I/II/.../XI/XII. During World War I they switched to using the LZ numbers, later adding 30 to obscure the total production.
The German Navy Zeppelins were labelled L 1/2/....
Since 1997, airships of the new type Zeppelin NT have been flying. They are not included here, as they are not Zeppelins in the traditional sense.
transported 9783 passengers in 489 flights, travelling 54,312 km; taken over as school ship by German military upon outbreak of World War I; broke apart while being "halled in" on October 8, 1915
travelled 44,437 km in 399 flights; first regular flight outside Germany (to Denmark and Sweden); taken over by German military upon outbreak of World War I; decommissioned in summer 1916
pushed down into the North Sea in a thunderstorm on September 9, 1913, drowning 14 crewmembers. This was the first Zeppelin incident in which fatalities occurred
transported 9837 passengers in 419 flights, travelling 39,919 km; taken over by German military upon outbreak of World War I; decommissioned in autumn of 1916
used in World War I for reconnaissance missions in western Poland; forced landing after an attack on Mlawa during the Battle of Tannenberg; crew captured by enemy cavalry while trying to burn down the ship.
hit by infantry fire during reconnaissance mission in Alsace on August 21, 1914 and damaged beyond repair in subsequent forced landing in St. Quirin , Lorraine
24 reconnaissance missions over the North Sea; participated in the first raid of England on January 20, 1915; destroyed by its crew after a forced landing (due to engine failure) in Denmark on February 17, 1915
used for reconnaissance missions and bombings in northern France; destroyed by English bomber in its hall in Düsseldorf on October 8, 1914.The bomber was a single-seat Sopwith Tabloid flown by Flt Lt Reginald Marix, RNAS (later Air Vice Marshal); he had flown from Antwerp and the raid was the first strategic bombing raid by an aeroplane.
11 reconnaissance missions over the North Sea; participated in the first raid of England on January 20, 1915. Forced landing in Blavandshuk on February 17, 1915 due to a storm; the crew was taken captive, with four members reported missing in action.
47 reconnaissance missions over North and Baltic Sea; proved especially useful in discovering enemy mines; two attack missions, dropping 700 kg bombs; damaged beyond repair by Russian air defence on August 7, 1915
prominent role in repelling a British Navy attack on German coast on December 25, 1914; 36 reconnaissance missions around North Sea, including marking of mine fields; one successful raid on England, dropping 700 kg bombs. Took fire during refilling of gas in its hall at Fuhlsbuttel and burnt down together with L 9 on September 16, 1916.
77 reconnaissance missions over the North Sea; several unsuccessful attempts to attack English coast. Brought down by British cruiser fire from HMS Phaeton and HMS Galatea and destroyed by British submarine E 31 on May 4, 1916
two raids at the eastern front, dropping 1110 kg bombs; heavily damaged by enemy fire on June 21, 1915, burnt down following forced landing near Insterburg.
two raids on Paris and Poperinghe (Belgium), dropping 2420 kg bombs; forced landing near Aeltre (Belgium) due to heavy damage by enemy fire, then destroyed by a storm.
74 reconnaissance missions in the North Sea; four raids on England dropping 5683 kg bombs; several attacks on British submarines. Burnt down in its hall on September 16, 1916 together with L 6.
shot down by Flt Sub-Lt Rex Warneford, 1 Sqdn RNAS, flying a Morane-Saulnier Type L, during its first raid on Calais on June 7, 1915. Warneford was awarded a Victoria Cross
Achieved first bombing raid on London on May 31, 1915 killing 7 and injuring 35 people (with material damage assessed at £18,596), five successful raids on Harwich, Ramsgate, Southend (twice) and London, dropping 8360 kg bombs. Destroyed by British bombing in its hall in Brussels.
three raids at the western, later two at the eastern front, dropping 4184 kg bombs in total. Heavily damaged by enemy fire on December 17, 1915 and decommissioned upon forced landing
8 reconnaissance missions around the North Sea; 5 attacks on England dropping 9900 kg bombs, including the first raid on London on August 17-18 1915 during which Leyton was bombed causing ten deaths and injuring 48 people. Destroyed in a thunderstorm on September 3, 1915 near Cuxhaven
5 reconnaissance missions; towed back to Ostend after taking heavy damage in a raid on London, Harwich and the Humber region on August 10, 1915 but burned down during subsequent disassembly.
most successful German Navy airship; 42 reconnaissance missions; 17 attacks on England dropping 22,045 kg bombs; taken out of service during 1917 and 1918. Destroyed by its crew on June 23, 1919.
8 reconnaissance missions; 3 attacks on England dropping 5780 kg bombs. Damaged by ground fire from Dartford AA battery during a raid on London on April 1, 1916, it was stranded at Knock Deep in the Thames estuary and 17 members of the crew were captured, one having died.
44 reconnaissance missions; 12 attacks on England dropping 18,048 kg bombs; delivered supplies to German isles in winter 1916. Damaged beyond repair in a forced landing near Brunsbüttel on October 19, 1917.
used at the South-Eastern and the Western Front; transported a diplomatic commission over enemy Serbia on November 9, 1915; one attack on Etables (France) and two attacks on Bucharest, dropping 4513 kg bombs in total; stranded near Turnovo (Bulgaria) on September 27, 1916
27 reconnaissance missions; 9 attacks on England dropping 10,724 kg bombs. Destroyed in its hall on December 28, 1916 when LZ69 "L 24" broke its back and took fire across the hall's entrance.
One raid on England on January 31, 1916, dropping 1600 kg bombs; with three engines failing, it afterwards came under Dutch fire and sank in the North Sea, drowning all crew members as nearby English fish trawler "King Stephen" refused any help to them. [Kapitan-Leutnant Loewe]
6 attacks dropping 14,200 kg on Dünaburg (Latvia), Minsk, the railroads of Riga, and Saloniki (three times); damaged by fire from Battleship HMS Agamemnon on May 5, 1916, it stranded in the Wardar marshes
7 attacks dropping 14,800 kg bombs along the Eastern and South-Eastern front; crashed on September 3, 1916 when the fore and aft nacelle broke away from the ships hull after a raid.
2 attacks on Ramsgate and Margate dropping 3000 kg bombs; in July1916 handed to the German Navy; 16 reconnaissance missions around the Baltic Sea; later used as a school ship. Decommissioned in July1917.
14 reconnaissance missions; 3 attacks dropping 4249 kg bombs along the Western Front; in January1917 handed to the German Navy who used it for experimenting. Decommissioned in September1917.
6 reconnaissance missions; 2 attacks on England dropping 2864 kg bombs; ran out of fuel after second attack on May 4, 1916 and stranded near Stavanger (Norway). The crew was taken into custody; Kapitänleutnant Stabbert escaped six months later.
17 reconnaissance missions; 10 attacks on England dropping 14,442 kg bombs; intercepted and destroyed by English fighter pilot Flt-Lt Cadbury firing phosphor shells off Lowestoft on November 28, 1916.
First of the "Super-Zeppelin" Class. 10 raids on England dropping 23,305 kg bombs (however causing limited damage due to poor sight); 31 reconnaissance missions above the North and Baltic Sea and at the Eastern Front; retired on November 17, 1917. In 1920 ordered to be transferred to Belgium in the context of war reparations, where it was disassembled. Some components, including an engine car, are preserved at the Royal Army and Military History Museum, Brussels.
30 reconnaissance missions; 8 attacks on England, dropping 9215 kg bombs; destroyed by British Curtis H12 Flying Boat flown by Flight Commander Robert Leckie RNAS (later Air Vice Marshal) near Terschelling on May 14, 1917 during a reconnaissance mission. (See LZ112/L70)
51 reconnaissance missions; 3 attacks on England dropping 5254 kg bombs; destroyed on August 21, 1917 by English fighter pilot starting from the cruiser HMS Yarmouth.
4 attacks on London (twice), Boulogne and, later, Bucharest, dropping 5760 kg bombs, plus several unsuccessful flights in bad weather. Decommissioned on July 5, 1917.
one attack on London dropping 1513 kg bombs, plus several flights aborted due to bad weather; handed to the German Navy in November1916; 15 reconnaissance missions around the Baltic Sea. Decommissioned in August1917.
19 reconnaissance missions around the North Sea; 4 raids on England dropping 8510 kg bombs; crashed into a wall while being "halled in" on December 28, 1916 and burned down together with LZ53 "L17".
one important reconnaissance mission in fleet operation against Sunderland; 6 attacks on England dropping 19,411 kg bombs; intercepted and destroyed by British fighter pilot Lt V Tempest on October 2nd, 1916 near Potters Bar, North of London, while commanded by the leading airship commander of the time, Kapitan Leutnant Helmut Mathy, who perished with his entire crew.
one successful attack on Calais dropping 1530 kg bombs (several other attacks being cancelled or aborted due to poor weather); decommissioned in August1917
one important reconnaissance mission in fleet operation against Sunderland; three attacks on England dropping 6860 kg bombs; intercepted and destroyed by British fighter pilot 2/Lt Frederick Sowrey in a BE2c on September 24, 1916 near Burstead, Essex. Kapitan-Leutnant Werner Petersen
17 reconnaissance missions around the North and Baltic Sea and England; 4 raids dropping 6450 kg bombs; retired on December 24, 1917; transferred to Japan in 1920 (disassembled)
forced landing near Brentwood, Essex September 24th 1916 during its first mission, in which 3200 kg bombs had been dropped. The crew were only partly successful in burningthe hull, and British engineers examined the skeleton and later used the plans as a basis for the construction of airships R33 and R34 Kapitan-Leutnant Alois Bocker.
three reconnaissance missions; two attacks on England dropping 3890 kg bombs; intercepted and destroyed by British fighter pilot 2/Lt Ian Pyott in BE2c 2738 off Hartlepool on November 28, 1916.Pyott was so close that his face was scorched
15 reconnaissance missions around the North Sea; four attacks on England dropping 6567 kg bombs; used as a school ship from December 11, 1917 on. Destroyed by its crew on June 23, 1919.
20 flights around the North Sea and England, including four reconnaissance missions; damaged during landing in fog at Rehben-an-der-Aller on February 7, 1917 and decommissioned.
15 reconnaissance missions around the Eastern Front and the Baltic Sea; three attacks dropping 6000 kg bombs. In 1920 ordered to be transferred to France in the context of war reparations.
12 reconnaissance missions around the North Sea; 3 attacks on England dropping 4700 kg bombs. Ran out of fuel on October 20, 1917; destroyed in forced landing near Sisteron , France, the crew being taken captive.
two reconnaissance missions around the North Sea; one attack on England dropping 300 kg bombs, and on return destroyed by French flak fire near Compiègne on March 17, 1917.
18 reconnaissance missions and three attacks dropping 3240 kg bombs around the North Sea and England. On January 5, 1918, a giant explosion in the air base in Ahlhorn destroyed four Zeppelins (including L 47) and one non-Zeppelin-type airship, distributed over 3 halls. This is supposed to have been an accident, though sabotage could not be ruled out.
6 reconnaissance missions; 2 attacks on England, dropping 3105 kg bombs (large parts of which missed their targets). Damaged beyond repair in a failed landing on June 16, 1917 in Nordholz .
5 reconnaissance missions around the North Sea; two attacks on England dropping 4135 kg bombs. Ran out of fuel on October 20, 1917 and was driven to the Mediterranean Sea after a forced landing near Dammartin , France.
17 reconnaissance missions and 3 attacks dropping 11,250 kg bombs around the Eastern Front and the Baltic Sea. Retired on October 8, 1917; in 1920 ordered to be transferred to Italy in the context of war reparations, where it broke apart one year later while gas was removed.
First of the "Height-Climber" class, which had a lightened structure to improve altitude. The strength of the structure was therefore compromised, which proved disastrous when unwittingly copied, as with the British R38, and USS "Shenandoah". 20 reconnaissance missions; 4 attacks on England dropping 6030 kg bombs; used as a school ship from June 6, 1918 on. Destroyed by its crew on June 23, 1919.
6 reconnaissance missions; one attack on English docks, dropping 1850 kg bombs. Shot down by British fighter aircraft on June 14, 1917 during reconnaissance mission.
8 reconnaissance missions; 4 attacks on England and British Navy units. Driven south to France by a heavy storm, it was shot down above Lunéville on October 20, 1917.
two reconnaissance missions around the North Sea; one raid on England dropping 2100 kg bombs; while returning, forced to land near Bourbonne-les-Bains on October 20, 1917 and captured almost undamaged by French forces. Plans derived from LZ96 were later used in the United States for construction of the first US "zeppelin", the USS Shenandoah (ZR-1).
20 reconnaissance missions; accidentally placed above London by an unexpected storm during a raid, it dropped 2020 kg bombs there. Destroyed by its crew on June 23, 1919.
14 reconnaissance missions; two attacks on England dropping 5840 kg bombs; destroyed together with L 60 when seven British Sopwith Camel fighters from the first aircraft carrier, HMS Furious, bombed the halls in Tondern. (Only two fighters returned to the Furious, though three of the others landed in Denmark after running low on fuel.)
19 reconnaissance missions; 4 attacks on England, dropping 11,930 kg bombs. Intercepted and destroyed by British Sopwith Camel N6812 flown by Lt Culley RAF, who took off from a lighter towed by the Destroyer HMS Redoubt, on August 11, 1918
Two attacks dropping 5450 kg bombs. Heavily damaged in the second one on October 19, 1917, it drifted behind western front and rose to Zeppelin all-time world record altitude of 7600 m to escape; then dismantled upon forced landing.
stationed in Jamboli (Bulgaria); supposed to reinforce German troops in German East Africa, but did not arrive in time and returned upon reports of German defeat, thereby breaking a long-distance flight record (6757 km in 95 hours). One attack on Italy dropping 6350 kg bombs. Crashed during a raid on Malta on April 7, 1918 for unknown reasons.
9 reconnaissance missions; two attacks on England dropping 4500 kg bombs; in 1920 ordered to be transferred to Italy in the context of war reparations.
13 reconnaissance missions over the North Sea; one attack on England dropping 2800 kg bombs. In 1920 ordered to be transferred to England in the context of war reparations, where it was disassembled.
directed last raid on England on August 6, 1918, with KK Peter Strasser, Commander of the Navy Airship Department on board; intercepted and destroyed over North Sea by British DH-4 flown by Major Edgar Cadbury with Captain Robert Leckie (later Air Vice-Marshal) as gunner. See LZ64/L22 entry: Leckie shot down two Zeppelins
intended for filling with helium gas instead of flammable hydrogen, which was, however, not made available. Regular travelling to North and South America. Destroyed in Lakehurst disaster on May 6, 1937.
test flights only, as still no helium could be obtained and filling with hydrogen was considered unacceptable after Hindenburg disaster. Destroyed in 1940 upon order of Hermann Göring.
