The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1910-06-29
FAMOUS A|RSH|P
WRECKED|NST0RM|
Zeppelin's Deutschland
a Battered Derelict
in Tree Tops.
GREAT CRAFT is
TOSSED BY GALE
Thirty-three Passengers Aboard
Escape by Rope Ladders From
Twisted Mass of Metal
Lodged in Great Pines
Of Teutoburgain
Forest.

Dusseldorf, June 2s.-Count Zeppe-
Inns passenger airship. Deutschland.
the highest developed of all the fam
Gus aeronauts' models, lies tonight on
top of the Teutoburgain Forest,
pierced with pine trees, a mass of de-
pleted silk and twisted aluminium.
The thirty-three persons aboard, after
wild contest with storm. escaped
uninjured climbing down rope lad
der from the wreck on the pine tops.
Herr Colesmann. general manager of
the new airship company; Chief Engi-
neer Durr, of the Zeppelin Company,
and Captain kannenburg, who person
ally had charge of the crew of ten,
and twenty newspaper men, sailed from
Dusseldorf at $50 o'clock this morn
ing for three hours excursion. The
objective point was Dortmund about
thirty five miles from Dusseldorf, but
high headwind prevailed. and an ef-
fort was made to reach Munster. a
garrison town, so that landing might
De made on the parade ground.
Motor Refused to Work.
1t was dangerous to attempt a land
ing in an open field. because Of the
storm. as the metal was likely to
pound to pieces. In the high wind
one of the motors refused to work and
the other two were not powerful
enough to make any progress in the
gale. The airship drifted, swaying in
the violent gusts and sometimes lean
ing to an angle of forty degrees, and
all the while the enginemen were at
work repairing the disabled motor
When this was done all four screws
were driven at their full power, with
which. under normal conditions, the
ship was capable of attaining speed
| OF forty miles an hour But the helms
man was unable to keep his course,
and the great craft was swung about
at the mercy of the winds
Colesmann did not dare to turn the
ship around for fear of overturning,
and he decided to drift In the gale,
which was now blowing at the rate of
fifty miles an hour, toward Osnabruck,
which is also garrison station. II
he missed that, he would continue on
to Senne Suddenly he perceived a
whirlwind coming. and ascended to a
height of nearly 1000 feet to avoid
the worst of it. With the whirlwind
came an avalanche of rain. After half
an hour the Deutschland came down
to permit of observations, and it was
seen that the Teutoburgain Forests
! lay below.
The forward motor again stopped,
and Colesmann sent five of the corre-
spondents to the aft gondcia to ballast
the vessel. The Deutschland sank rap
idly. having lost much gas in the high
attitudes, and dragged along the top
! of the dense forest
A heavy branch of a tree broke
| through the floor of the cabin amid
ships, throwing two of the guests to
h y l.
through the gas compartments and
the whole great structure settled down
thirty or forty feet from the ground.
| Does Not Blame Ship.
! TT isn't the fault of the Zeppelin
system exclaimed Herr Colesmann
that is all right. 1t is our own
fault"
The airship for which Herr Coles
mann's company had just paid s137,500
looked like wreck. The frames were
broken but the motors were not dam
aged. The silk was ripped and had
| fallen In torn mass on the tops of
the trees rope ladder was swung
down and every one was mustered be-
low un1njured' except for bruise or
two. Two natives identified the spot
as near to Wellendorf, east OF Osna-
bruck.
Many persons Of the countryside
must have seen the descent and re-
ports of disaster, explosion. and death
We're widely spread A company of
infantry was sent from Osnabruck,
and picketed the wreckage.
| The disaster occurred at $50
| o'clock in the evening. The early
I part OF the flight was delightful. much
like automooiling, without the jarring.
The airship maintained an altitude OF
about 500 feet.