It should be noted that this was not the first time
that the Graf Zeppelin had flown over Budapest. It had been visible in the
airspace over the capital in 1929 and 1930, sailing right over Hungary.
The
initial sighting was met with relative disinterest, but when the celestial monster
flew from Greece to Germany the following year, it was covered by the Hungarian
press. A year later, Budapest was enthralled when the miracle happened here: the Graf Zeppelin airship
LZ 127 landed on the runway of the Manfred
Weiss factory on Csepel island. It then took off again soon afterwards.
The Graf Zeppelin was the figurehead of German
industry, designed by Ludwig Dürr. Its maiden voyage, which lasted three and a
half hours, was made in Germany in September 1928, followed by several test
journeys, before the airship embarked on its first transatlantic journey that
October.
Along the way, the airship was hit by a huge storm and, although it
suffered serious damage, it still reached America. The press had a field day predicting
the inevitable disaster, before backing down once it had landed safely.
The Zeppelin was impressive in size, a 60-tonne
structure that was 236 metres long and 33 metres high. It had a range of 10,000
kilometres, encompassing the distance between Europe and America, although it
flew at a fraction of the speed of today’s planes, at just 117kph.
It had far
fewer seats, too. Originally, there was only room for only 20 passengers and
the crew numbered 45. Later, capacity increased, so that 60 took a
round-the-world voyage in the autumn of 1929. Tickets were very expensive and while
the views and the service were splendid, there was no heating in the booths.
Crash and burn
After Adolf Hitler came to power in January 1933, the
Nazis could use the Zeppelin to show off their prowess and the airship
increasingly served as a propaganda tool. Its heyday proved to be short-lived. Sister
blimp to the LZ 127, the LZ 129 Hindenburg was commissioned in 1936. It only flew
for one year, before crashing in New Jersey in May 1937, killing 35. It was
withdrawn from the market that same year.
Winding the clock back six years, on 28 March 1931, the Graf Zeppelin departed from Friedrichshafen, still the main operations base for current iterations of the airship, the other side of Lake Constance from Switzerland.
In addition to the crew, 12 passengers were on board, including a woman, Andorné Bethlen Pál, two politicians, the son of Hungarian leader Miklós Horthy and the English Patient, explorer Count László Almásy.
Illustrious writer Frigyes Karinthy was reporting on the event for the Est and Magyarország newspapers. The Zeppelin entered Hungarian airspace at Lake Fertő, then arrived in Csepel at eight o'clock the next morning, having flown over Pápa, Tihany and Székesfehérvár. The weather was not very favourable – the wind was blowing hard and snow was falling.
At the Manfréd Weiss factory, a crowd of nearly
30,000 had gathered around the runway to greet the Zeppelin. National leader Miklós
Horthy also took part in the ceremony and gave a speech, but it had to be cut
short due to bad weather.
This also affected the route, as the Transdanubian
stations had to be bypassed, so only the western part of the country could be
admired. At that point, other dignitaries joined those on board, including
ministers Gyula Gömbös and Sándor Wekerle.
The Graf Zeppelin appeared in the sky of Budapest at 7.55am. The Est journalist wrote with delight about the historic moment:
“No one expected the arrival of the airship giant except for the radio officer and airport chiefs when the announcement was made in front of the hangar at three minutes before 8am: 'It’s coming!’"
"Curious faces turn in the direction of the Customs House after the pointing arms. Above the hills of Buda, on the grey horizon, the silver body of the giant airship shines imperceptibly, like some giant fish floating in a sea of air. Like a kind of whale. The Zeppelin comes over the Danube in one piece with dignified slowness, low. Above Csepel, then turn towards the airport. The Zeppelin is approaching the centre of the square with due decorum. It’s a terrifying sight.”
Journalists asked several of passengers to share their experiences with the readers. Some compared the trip by Zeppelin to a smooth plane flight:
“Dr Hülmér Hültl, the eminent medical professor, cheerfully said about his impressions: ‘I've travelled by plane at least 30 times so I know what I’m saying. My heart almost always sinks a little when we leave the ground. For the first time, I didn’t have that unsettling feeling you have when you fly. By contrast, travelling by Zeppelin is much safer and more comfortable’.”
As can be gleaned from the reports echoing the heightened atmosphere, the Zeppelin’s arrival into Budapest was a major event. Locals took a while to calm down afterwards and the usual order of their lives was restored. It proved to be a once-in-a-lifetime affair – the Zeppelin never landed again in the Hungarian capital.
