LZ 37

The airship LZ 37 was a World War I Zeppelin of the German Kaiserliche Marine. It was the first Zeppelin to be brought down during the war by an enemy plane, on the night of 6 to 7 June 1915, near Sint-Amandsberg, Belgium.

History

In 1915 Zeppelins were first used by Germany for strategic bombing.
LZ 37 was part of a raid with Zeppelins LZ 38 and LZ 39. While returning, she was intercepted in the air by Reginald Warneford in his Morane Parasol during its first raid on Calais, on 7 June 1915. Warneford dropped six Hales bombs on the zeppelin, which caught fire and crashed into the convent school of Sint-Amandsberg, next to Ghent, Belgium, killing two nuns. The commander of LZ 37, Oberleutnant, and seven members of the crew were killed. One crew member, Steuermann Alfred Mühler, survived with only superficial burns and bruises when he was precipitated from the forward gondola, landing in a bed. It was the first victory of a heavier-than-air aircraft over a lighter-than-air dirigible. Warneford was awarded the Victoria Cross for his achievement.
LZ 37 was based in, Belgium, where also other heavy bombers Gotha G IV were based.