Disasters
Built airships have neglected basic safety measures, filling them unsafe, but cheap hydrogen instead of inert, but expensive and inaccessible helium.
In March 1936, was created successor aging "Graf Zeppelin" - an airship LZ 129 "Hindenburg", designed for safe use of helium. However, the required amount of helium at the time, only the U.S., which imposed an embargo on the export of war materials to Nazi Germany. I had to fill cylinders "Hindenburg's" affordable hydrogen.
Recurring accidents and disasters seriously undermine confidence in the reliability and feasibility of using airships. May 6, 1937 in front of the audience was burned "Hindenburg", killing 35 people on board and one on the ground. In peacetime disasters that have claimed many lives, killed the American airship "Shenandoah" (14 deaths out of 43 aboard), Akron (73 of 76) and "Macon" (2 of 83), the British «R. 38 "(44 of 49) and« R.101 »(48 of 54), the French" Diksmyunde "(50 of 50). While the causes of accidents were dealt with, the further progress of aviation has left behind the era of airships.
Among the experts who have studied the causes of death of large airships, such as "Akron" and "Hindenburg", it was felt led to the catastrophe of destruction shell or tank of gas, occurred at the maneuvers with a small radius of circulation.