Graf Zeppelin Arrives in the United States, October 1928

de bene esse: literally, of well-being, morally acceptable but subject to future validation or exception

On October 15th, 1928, the German airship LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin appeared in the sky above Lakehurst, New Jersey, greeted by cheering crowds on the ground below. The ship was completing its maiden transatlantic voyage, which had taken it from Germany to the shores of the United States in 93 hours. The silent newsreel above captures the moment of its arrival. 

Following trips to exotic locales, including a round-the-world journey and a research expedition to the Arctic, in 1932 the Grap Zeppelin began a regular intercontinental service between Germany and Brazil.  It was grounded following the Hindenberg crash of 1937, and scrapped in 1940.

From The Archive

Crossing the Atlantic in 1919 by Airship

B.J. Haimes describes how a British airship, the R34, raised the possibility of transatlantic travel by dirigible.

Hindenberg and the End of the Airship Era

The Hindenburg disaster marked the beginning of the end for airship travel. Yet what is often forgotten today is that, until the 1930s, airships were a popular and luxurious way to travel.