Security Zeppelin

Security Zeppelins are large military airships that appear in BioShock Infinite. They are used by the Founders and the Vox Populi to bombard targets on the ground, as well as to establish local air superiority by attacking other airships. Unlike the ubiquitous gunships, they are rarely seen around Columbia. These crafts utilize a Lutece Particle for aerial lift and standard technologies for movement.
==BioShock Infinite==
The very first Security Zeppelin that Booker DeWitt will encounter is near the gateway to Monument Island. While proceeding through the interior of a clock tower, the structure is bombarded by the airship, turning parts of the masonry into rubble. Leaping out of the stricken building and onto the airship, Booker manages to eliminate most of the crew and commandeer the airship, which turns out to be a trap by Comstock.
When Booker encounters his second Zeppelin while supporting the Vox uprising, he ends up having to bring it down by boarding it via the Sky-Line and then sabotaging the vessel's inner machinery by slicing the cables with his Sky-Hook.
A zeppelin controlled by the Vox is seen attacking Downtown Emporia and then leaves.
During the final conflict on board the Hand of the Prophet, a fleet of zeppelins controlled by the Vox Populi appear in the skies, and Booker can either use Songbird to attack them or board them himself and destroy their engines. Three Zeppelins must be destroyed to end the battle.
There seem to be at least three different classes of Security Zeppelins. The smallest version is roughly the same size as The First Lady and seems to be a militarized version of the many civilian Zeppelins seen when Booker first arrives in Columbia. This Zeppelin has a single deck with a large hatch in the floor possibly used to deploy Pods containing Motorized Patriots. At the front of the airship is a cabin that contains the ship's controls. The second class of Security Zeppelin is nearly twice the size of the smallest version and has at least two decks. The main deck has the ship's bridge at the front with a large open area in the middle. At the back is the craft's power plant which can be destroyed. Above the power plant is a hatch leading to another deck, but there is no information on this area as the hatch is sealed. The last class, the Security Carrier, is considerably larger than the other classes and has docking bays able to hold up to four gunships. Little else is known of these crafts. All classes of Security Zeppelin have engines mounted on small wings on either side of the craft. The smaller classes mount a total of two engines while the Security Carrier has a total of four. The two smaller classes of craft are able to carry a Barrage Automaton on their undersides. The middle class of Security Zeppelin can mount over twenty-four Pods carrying Motorized Patriots on the underside of its gondola. It can be assumed that Security Zeppelins cannot mount a Barrage Automaton while carrying Pods.
==Burial at Sea - Episode 2==
In Burial at Sea - Episode 2, Elizabeth has the opportunity to sneak on board a Vox-controlled Security Zeppelin when she returns to Columbia. Once there she can search the main hold which is full of valuables looted by the Vox during their uprising.
==Combat Zeppelin==
A class of Zeppelin related to the Security Zeppelin is the Combat Zeppelin. This class of airship seems to be very rare in Columbia with only two examples seen by the player, the Hand of the Prophet and The OPS Zeal (and the OPS Zeal may not exist in the main storyline since it is seen only in the Clash in the Clouds DLC). The greatest difference between the Combat Zeppelins and all other zeppelins is their size. The Hand of the Prophet is hundreds of feet long and has multiple decks. Combat Zeppelins also have a different layout compared to other zeppelins used in Columbia. The area that would be considered the envelope (the large gas-filled upper portion of the craft) on normal zeppelins is taken up by the zeppelin's systems. Everything from weapons to power plants to living quarters for the crew. Another major difference from real world zeppelins is the shape of the Combat Zeppelins. Columbia's Combat Zeppelins are very short with rather blunt ends, like that of a pill, rather than the long cylindrical shape seen in craft like the Hindenburg. One last difference is that there is a large deck on the top of the craft. This top deck area is not unlike the main deck of an ocean-going ship.
===The Hand of the Prophet===
Comstock's flagship, the Hand of the Prophet, is the largest zeppelin seen in the game and very likely the largest craft in Columbia. On each side of the craft are three wing-like structures. It is doubtful that these wings give any lift and their main purpose seems to mount two large engines. These wings do not seem to have control surfaces on them though the large tail section at the stern does
On each side of the ship are ten very large caliber cannons mounted in casemates that give the weapons a limited arc of fire. These heavy weapons are never seen being used in the game though ammunition for them can be found in the lower portions of the ship. The only other weapons externally mounted on the Hand of the Prophet are four Gun Automatons, but these weapons seem more intended to fight people attempting to board and capture the ship rather than attacking enemy craft. For additional security two Rocket Automatons are mounted internally on an upper deck.
At the bottom of the ship is a large docking area for Gunships. This docking bay makes it easy for personnel and cargo to be transported to and from the ship. All over the hull of the ship are Sky-Lines that hold drop pods for Motorized Patriots. There are two Pod Launching Bays used to control the dropping of the pods, one at the bow ship and the other at the stern.
Mounted on the top deck towards the stern is the ship’s superstructure which contains the bridge, Comstock's quarters along with his office, and a sanctuary. The bridge is mounted very high in the superstructure and looks down on the top deck and the ship's power core. Atop the superstructure on the top deck is a crow's nest, sky-lines, and walkways. Scattered throughout the interior of the ship are storage areas, workshops for the assembly of Motorized Patriots and ship maintenance, sleeping quarters for the crew, ammunition magazines, and machinery spaces. More detailed information on the ship's internal structure can be found on the level Hand of the Prophet.
The Hand of the Prophet is constructed mostly of wood and steel. While the hull is made of metal, many decks and internal walls are wooden or have wooden sections. Despite being a warship, the Hand of the Prophet does not seem to be well armored and the power core is exposed to enemy attack. In many places, the hull is only a few inches thick, if that. There is no reliable way to estimate how heavy the Hand of the Prophet is, but it certainly masses many thousand tons, possibly over ten thousand. This makes it similar in weight to a real armored cruiser of the same time period.
The zeppelin's purpose is to act as Comstock's main flagship and mobile command center. But it can also act as a flying carrier for Gunships and it can assemble and drop large numbers of pods containing Motorized Patriots. The heavy guns mounted on the sides of the ship appear to be intended for the bombardment of surface targets and not airborne ones given their limited arc of fire. The lack of armor would seem to point towards the Hand of the Prophet not being a front line warship, but a command ship with the capability of attacking and destroying ground targets through long range bombardment or the deploying Motorized Patriots. Heavier armor may not have been deemed necessary since there are few weapons that could fire on the ship if it maintained altitude.
===The OPS Zeal===
The amount of information on this ship is very limited as we see only the top portion of the ship while it is docked in Finkton and it could still be under construction. The shape of the OPS Zeal is similar to that of the Hand of the Prophet. However, the Zeal is a smaller craft and differs in its design in a number of respects.
On each side of the Zeal is a single wing with a large engine mounted on it. This engine is similar to the ones used on the Hand of the Prophet. Like the Columbia flagship, the Zeal has a large top deck with the ship's superstructure mounted to the rear of the vessel. Near the center of the top deck is a large island with a pair of Freight Hooks on it. Given that this island blocks much of the view forward from the bridge, the top portion may be there to help with the ship's construction and would be removed when construction was finished. Unlike the Hand of the Prophet, the Zeal does not seem to have sky-lines mounted on its hull.
The known armament of the Zeal is mounted on the top deck or on the superstructure. The ship’s main guns are mounted in four turrets, two to each side, whose firing arcs are to the side of the ship. None of these turrets can fire straight ahead or to the rear. In each of the turrets are two very large caliber guns. These turrets are too small to be manned, so they certainly have automated loading systems. The turrets are either controlled remotely or there is an automaton that aims and fires the guns. All turrets have a large antenna-like structure on them, but its purpose is unknown.
In addition to the main guns, there are four smaller turrets, two to each side. Two of these turrets are mounted near the front of the ship slightly below the level of the top deck. These are mid-sized guns smaller than the main ones and could be in the four to five inch range. The last pair of turrets are mounted on either side of the bridge. The caliber of the guns are the smallest of all and seem to be between twenty and forty millimeters. Like the main gun turrets, these secondary turrets are too small to be manned by a human being.
Given the size of the Zeal and the inability to see the entire ship in normal gameplay, it is very likely that there are additional weapon systems and/or a docking bay for gunboats. One can see that there are no weapons mounted on the side of the ship as they are with the Hand of the Prophet. The Zeal seems to be more heavily armored than the Hand of the Prophet, but it can't be known for sure. The hull of the Zeal is made of riveted steel, but like most naval ships of the area the decks are made of wood. While smaller than the Hand of the Prophet, the Zeal should still easily mass over one thousand tons when fully loaded.
Given the known armament of the Zeal, it is possible this ship was meant for a number of different roles.
==Gallery==
===Pre-Release, Concept Art and Models===
E32011GameplaySecurityZeppelinSchedule1.png|A schedule to helmsmen of Security Zeppelin patrols, marked by the Vox Populi.
E32011GameplaySecurityZeppelin1.png|Security Zeppelins in the distance.
Demo Zeppelin1.PNG|Security Zeppelin seen in in the 2011 E3 Gameplay Demo.
E32011GameplaySecurityZeppelin2.png|A Zeppelin Booker attacks to progress.
Security Zeppelin TV.png|A Security Zeppelin as seen in the cinematic commercial.
EarlyAirshipZeppelinConcepts.png|Early concept ideas for airship designs, developed into the Zeppelin.
ClashintheCloud Zeppelin Concept.png|Early concept of a Columbia Zeppelin.
Zeppelin Conc Art.png|Various Zeppelin concept arts.
ClashintheCloud Zeppelin fair Concept.png|Concept art of a Zeppelin's Fair.
Civilian Airship Concept Art.jpg|Concept art for a Civilian Zeppelin, by Laura Zimmermann.
Civilian Airship Interior Concept Art.jpg|Concept art for the interior of a Civilian Zeppelin.
BioI Paul Presley Civilian Zeppelin Model.jpg|Civilian Zeppelin model, by Paul Presley.
===Common Zeppelins===
SecurityZeppelin in Fink Factory.png|Security Zeppelin outside the Factory.
BioShockInfinite 2015-10-25 12-15-50-833.png|A Zeppelin firing its Barrage Automaton.
SecurityZeppelin Outerdeck.png|A Security Zeppelin's Outer Deck.
SecurityZeppelin ControlFront.png|A Zeppelin's Outer Control Room.
SecurityZeppelin ControlInner.png|A Zeppelin's Inner Control Room.
SecurityZeppelin InnerDeck.png|A Zeppelin's Inner Deck.
SecurityZeppelin Engine.png|A Zeppelin's Engine.
SecurityZeppelin Armada.png|A fleet of Vox Zeppelins.
SecurityZeppelin Patriots.png|A Security Zeppelin with Patriot Pods.
SecurityZeppelin PodLaunching.png|A Zeppelin launching its Pods.
SecurityZeppelin Burning.png|A Security Zeppelin burning down.
===Unique Zeppelins===
Civilian Zeppelin.png|A Civilian Zeppelin.
TearZeppelin.png|A Zeppelin brought in through a Tear.
ComstockZeppelin.png|Comstock's Zeppelin.
ComstockZeppelin Front.png|The front of Comstock's Zeppelin.
ComstockZeppelin ControlOuter.png|Comstock's Zeppelin's Outer Control Room.
ComstockZeppelin ControlInner.png|Comstock's Zeppelin's Inner Control Room.
ComstockZeppelin OuterDeck.png|Comstock's Zeppelin's Outer Deck.
ComstockZeppelin InnerDeck.png|Comstock's Zeppelin's Inner Deck.
ComstockZeppelin Hangar.png|Comstock's Zeppelin's Hangar Deck.
ComstockZeppelin InnerBurning.png|Comstock's Zeppelin's Deck in flames.
ComstockZeppelin Explosion.png|Comstock's Zeppelin exploding.
1984Zeppelin.png|A Zeppelin fleet during the 1984 New York City attack.
VoxZeppelin Emporia.png|A Vox Security Carrier Zeppelin attacks Downtown Emporia.
VoxZeppelin Side.png|The side of the Vox Security Carrier Zeppelin in Downtown Emporia.
VoxZeppelin HandProphet.png|A Vox Zeppelin during the final battle.
BI HandoftheProphet First.png|The Hand of the Prophet under way.
BI HandoftheProphet Nearlyfull.png|The massive airship in profile.
BI HandoftheProphet Under.png|The underside of the Hand of the Prophet.
Topmostdeck.jpeg|An overhead view of the command deck.
OPSZeal2.png|The Top Deck of the OPS Zeal.
OPSZeal8.png|A side view of the Top Deck and Bridge Area.
==Behind the Scenes==
*The Zeppelin was invented and pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von ZeppelinCount Ferdinand von Zeppelin on Wikipedia. in the early 20th century. The Zeppelins were first outlined in the 19th century and were first flown in 1910 as the world's first passenger airline service, named DELAG.DELAG on Wikipedia.
*Demo material centered on the Vox Populi features a Vox-controlled Zeppelin with a shiny outer envelope and graffiti on the side that says "Our voice will be heard!".
**In the released game, the outer envelope appears to have a matte surface, while Vox-controlled Zeppelins are wrapped in wide bands of red cloth as a means of identification.
*In early demos of BioShock Infinite, it seemed they had a more unscripted role in the game, this is removed from the finished product except for the ending sequence on the Hand of The Prophet, where there can be multiple gameplay options to dispose of the Zeppelins.
==References==
de:Sicherheits Zeppelin
ru:Дирижабль-охранник
Category:Machines
Category:Vehicles
Category:BioShock Infinite Enemies
Category:Burial at Sea - Episode 2 DLC
Category:Columbia Inventions